Courage and the Hendersons
by Jonathan R
Summary: A town's dark past. An ancient silver dollar. A traveling family caught in the middle. Check out this critically-acclaimed Courage story that one reader called: "...the best Courage fanfic in the world." (Now with commentary and deleted prologue!)
1. The Message

"COURAGE AND THE HENDERSONS"

  
  


Note: This story is in no way related to the early '90s movie "Harry and the Hendersons".

  
  


Before I begin my story, I would like to give you my version of how the town of Nowhere was founded, because it's important to the story. 

In 1802, two young Scottish immigrants named Joseph Williams and Reginald Baggs (who was incidently Eustace's grandfather) headed west toward California to establish their own town. Halfway there, in the territory of Kansas, they lost half of their rations to bears. Tired and defeated, the two friends decided to build the town right where they stood. Due to the scarcity of vegetation, as well as the lack of a map, Joseph and Reginald unanimously named their town Nowhere and started building. 

The town probably would not have survived had it not been for the California Gold Rush. Everyone headed West, and Nowhere was declared a halfway point along the way. The town transformed from a post office and an outhouse to a decent-sized town. Early on, Joseph Williams was voted mayor of Nowhere by the toss of a coin. Any man other than Reginald would've felt cheated, but Reginald, nevertheless, accepted it. (Reginald, unlike Eustace, was a decent, good-tempered man. Hard to believe they're related!)

Things went well for everybody, until 1852. In that unforgettable year, Reginald Baggs (now as old as Eustace) was digging a hole to put in a telegraph pole when he suddenly struck oil! The town doubled its population overnight. Reginald became extremely wealthy and was declared Nowhere's Head of Finances. This infuriated the now-senile Joseph Williams, who couldn't believe Reginald's stroke of good fortune. If Joseph hadn't retired from office three years ago, he could've had a share of the oil profits! Joseph locked himself in his house for several weeks.

One month later, Reginald was discovered dead in a field outside of Nowhere, stabbed in the back. He was buried in Nowhere's first cemetery (which, as many Courage fans know, is where Courage's house was built on.) Naturally, everyone pointed to Joseph as the murderer. Despite his constant denials, Joseph Williams was found guilty of murdering his friend, Reginald Baggs. As he was led to the gallows, Joseph vowed that he would get even with Reginald and receive the money he rightfully deserved. Joseph was buried in an unmarked grave on the other side of town, far from the cemetery.

Since then, Nowhere experienced a steady decline to where it is today. There is a museum in Nowhere that chronicles its history, including the story mentioned above. The centerpiece of the museum is Joseph's prize possession: his first silver dollar, which was given to him by Reginald in their youth.

  
  


And now, on with the show!

  
  
  
  


Chapter 1: The Message

  
  


It was 3 A.M.

  
  


On the outskirts of Nowhere, the lonely little farmhouse stood surveying the landscape. The windmill was its only companion. Inside, the kitchen, living room, stairs, and the upstairs hallway remained vacant and empty. In the bedroom, Eustace and Muriel were both in a deep sleep.

Courage was in the attic. Normally, the dog slept on his masters' bed, but at around 1 A.M., he awoke from a nightmare screaming, which woke up Eustace and Muriel. Eustace kicked Courage out of the room and locked the door. Drowsy with sleep, Courage walked up to the attic. Once there, he took out a cot from a corner of the room and set it up across from his computer. Courage considered turning on the computer to view "certain websites", but he was far too tired. He crawled between the sheets and fell asleep.

  
  


Now, at five minutes after three, everything was dead silent. No wind, no crickets, nothing. What finally broke the silence was not a gust of wind or a creak of the house. It was actually Courage's computer, which was mysteriously turned on. Being a light sleeper, Courage woke up immediately to find himself bathed in a blue light from the computer screen. He traveled over to the computer, sat in the chair, and looked at the screen. In the center of the screen, was a black instant messenger box. The subject's name was only titled: "unknown". The message itself read: ARE YOU A RESIDENT OF NOWHERE?

  
  


For a moment, Courage thought his computer was playing another joke on him, but along the bottom of the screen, there was a steady stream of 'Z's moving from right to left. The computer was asleep. Someone else was talking to Courage. The message repeated itself.

  
  


ARE YOU A RESIDENT OF NOWHERE? ANSWER TRUTHFULLY.

  
  


Having no choice in the matter, Courage typed in the word 'Yes' and pressed Enter. After a moment, the stranger responded. Courage's fur began to stand on end as he read the message:

  
  


BE WARNED. IN 3 DAYS, VENGEANCE WILL RETURN. RETRIBUTION WILL BE ATTEMPTED. THE DOLLAR IS THE KEY.

  
  


Courage's eyes widened, partly with fear and partly with puzzlement. He read the message again and again, but Courage didn't understand what the cryptic message meant, so he typed in, "What does it mean?" However, just as he was about to press Enter, the monitor turned off by itself! Whining, Courage turned the monitor back on...but the message window and the stranger were gone. 

  
  


Courage shakily wrote down the odd message on a slip of paper and placed it next to the computer. He wouldn't be getting anymore sleep for the rest of the night.

  
  
  
  


Five hours later, the sun had risen. Eustace, Muriel, and a tired Courage were at the kitchen table having breakfast. Nobody was talking, and Courage couldn't figure out why. His masters were unusually silent for the past several days. Suddenly, Eustace slammed down his coffee cup onto the table and declared, "Muriel! We need to get ourselves some visitors!"

"I agree," proclaimed Muriel. "It sure would be nice if we had some people to talk to."

Silently, Courage agreed with them.

Eustace continued. "Plus, I'm sick and tired of seeing the same two faces every single day."

Muriel began wondering, "If only there was someway that a few people could stop here for a few days or so."

"Yeah," grumbled Eustace. Then, a Grinch-like smile spread onto his face. "And I think I know how! Heh heh." Without a word, he turned and raced out the door.

  
  


Muriel and Courage glanced at each other and went outside. The didn't see Eustace anywhere. Suddenly, they heard hammering behind the house. The woman and her dog ran to the source of the sounds and saw a peculiar sight. Eustace was hammering large nails into a board of wood placed over two sawhorses. "What are ye doing, Eustace?" asked Muriel.

"Quiet!" bellowed Eustace. "I can't concentrate with you yapping,"

Turning to Courage, Muriel said, "I wonder what he's doing?" Courage just shrugged his shoulders and uttered an 'I dunno' sound. 

  
  


Finally, Eustace held up the two by four, which had nails punctured all over it. Eustace than ran around the house toward the road with Courage and Muriel right behind him. Eustace heaved the wood onto the road. The nails stuck up towards the sky, creating a spike strip.

"There," said Eustace. "Now all we gotta do is wait for an unsuspecting car to drive by and 'whamo!' Instant visitors!" Eustace laughed at his own intelligence and headed back to the house. Muriel followed him, asking, "Don't you think this is a little drastic?"

"Drastic times call for drastic measures, woman! Now where's me paper?"

  
  


Courage decided to stay out a little longer. The nails were sharp enough to puncture even the thickest tire. Courage wondered what would happen if he accidently tripped into the spike strip. It wasn't a pretty picture.

  
  


"Ohh," muttered Courage to himself. "I have a bad feeling about this."

Coming soon: Chapter 2 - The Hendersons Arrive...

  
  



	2. The Hendersons Arrive

Chapter 2: The Hendersons Arrive

  
  


As Courage, Muriel, and Eustace finished their breakfast, something was happening far away on the other side of Nowhere. A station wagon was driving toward the city on the only road that went through town. There were five passengers inside the car; a rather average-looking family and their dog. Driving the car was a handsome man with brown hair and blue eyes. His wife sat next to him, a thin woman with curly red hair and a blue-green dress. She was trying her best to read a huge, fold-out map in front of her. In the back seat sat a 10 year old girl with short, wavy brown hair and was wearing a tank top, shorts, and shoes. She was talking to her stuffed bear who was nestled in her lap. Beside her was a teenage boy who was typing on his laptop computer. He had black-dyed hair and was wearing sunglasses, cut-off shorts, and a T-shirt. (Author's note: This is not Di Lung, the character from the show who has a similar description.) The family dog was in the back with the suitcases.

  
  


The woman tried her best to fold the map back up. She turned to her husband at the wheel. "Dear, isn't it strange that there hasn't been any traffic for almost half an hour?"

"Don't worry," said the man. "Vacant roads are very common in this part of the country."

"But what if we're lost?" asked the woman.

"Look, honey, we're not lost. I know we're in Kansas somewhere. Can't you find where we are on the map?"

"I tried, Carl, but that so-called map is incomprehensible!" argued the man's wife.

"Oh, stop worrying, Diane. Fortunately for us, we have our own "cyber-navigator" with us, right Kevin?"

  
  


"I'm on it, Dad," sighed Kevin, who instantly started pounding the keyboard keys. Within seconds, he located a website on maps, typed in the coordinates from his personal GPS device, and viewed the result. He saw their location on a small map on the screen and saw that they were headed straight for the town of...

  
  


Kevin gasped. He tore his sunglasses off his face, revealing dark brown eyes. He couldn't believe his luck! "I don't believe it," he whispered.

  
  


"Where are we, son?" asked Kevin's father, Carl.

"Nowhere," uttered the teen.

"Oh, c'mon. We must be somewhere!" said Carl, thinking his son was fooling around.

"No," said Kevin, with a wide eyed expression on his face. "The name of the town is called 'Nowhere'!"

His parents arched their eyebrows in curiosity. "Really?" asked his mother.

"Hey!" proclaimed Carl, finding a joke. "Maybe there's a tourist attraction in the middle of it," He laughed, jokingly. Diane just rolled her eyes.

  
  


Kevin switched off his laptop and put it in the back. His eyes landed on the dog, who was asleep. Kevin woke the dog up and said, "Were arriving in Nowhere." The dog looked shocked. Kevin reached over and lifted one of the dog's ears. He whispered into it, "Maybe now I can finally figure out what all my nightmares mean."

  
  


"Mommy," whined the little girl (whose name is Katie, by the way.) "Kevin's whispering to the dog again."

The mother turned to face Kevin. "Now, Kevin, don't you know how weird it is when you whisper to the dog like that?"

"Sorry, Mom," said Kevin returning to his seat. "It's just...well, this dog is, like...the only one who really understands me, I guess."

"Don't worry, dear," said Carl to Diane. "He's just going through one of those teen phases."

"Yeah. Phases, Mr. Furry," said Katie to her stuffed bear.

  
  
  
  


They had just passed the city limits sign.

  
  
  
  


Once downtown, the car stopped next to a fast-food place. The man went inside to order some food. The kids were antsy, so their mother told them to go to a small museum on the other side of the lot. "Hurry back, kids. We want to try and make it to California in three days!"

  
  


Three days. Those words froze Kevin on the spot, and a chill went up his spine. Under his sunglasses, his eyes widened with fear.

"What's wrong?" asked his mother, who wondered why her son had stopped.

Trying to think up an excuse, Kevin suddenly acted annoyed and whined, "But I don't like Aunt Vivian and Uncle Mike!"

It was his mother's turn to be annoyed. "Now, Kevin, we've been over this before. They just want some of the family to help them move into their new house in San Francisco. We were the ones lucky enough to oblige. Now go make sure your sister's OK. I'll stay here with the dog."

  
  


Kevin ran through the door of the small museum. There was a gift shop to his right and one large room in front of him. There were displays and plaques along the walls. It was the display in the center of the room that caught Kevin's attention. Surrounded by glass, there was a pedestal that held up a shiny silver dollar. Behind it, on the wall, were portraits of Joseph Williams and Reginald Baggs. "Just like in my dreams," whispered Kevin. He saw his sister struggling to read a diorama of the town's first plumbing system. Together they read the rest of Nowhere's history (most of which you read in the previous chapter.) By the time they left, Katie was quite bored, but Kevin was quite pleased with himself, finally understanding a lot about this strange town's history.

  
  


As Carl walked back to the car with the food, he saw Katie and Kevin coming from the museum. He turned to his wife to say something but was stopped by the strange expression of curiosity on her face. "What's wrong?" Carl asked.

"Y'know, it's funny," mumbled his wife. "It's almost as though there's something familiar about this town. Almost as if a family member once lived here or something."

"Oh, these small towns always leave a sense of nostalgia in people like us. Now c'mon, the food's getting cold."

The family ate their brunch inside the car. Afterwards, the family filled up the tank and headed out of town...in the direction of Courage's house. 

"California, here we come!" declared Carl for the millionth or so time. "In about a thousand miles or so."

Kevin looked utterly defeated. He hoped he could stay here to try and find someone who could interpret the dreams he's kept having, but his Mom just said, "Maybe we'll stop on our way back."

  
  
  
  


He didn't tell her that by then, it would be too late.

  
  


Coming up next... Chapter 3: Courage's First Crush 

  
  
  
  
  
  



	3. Courage's First Crush

Chapter 3: Courage's First Crush

  
  


Courage stood in the middle of the living room unsure of what to do next. He was never sure what to do in the time period between breakfast and lunch. He had rinsed his mouth with water and walked into the living room to do...what?

Courage heard Muriel doing the wash down in the basement, and Eustace was at the front window, looking at the spike strip.

"Where the heck are me visitors? Stupid cars!" He then turned and headed upstairs. "I'm gettin' me paper." 

  
  


As Courage watched Eustace go upstairs, he uttered a sad sigh. Like his masters, he too wanted some companionship. Even better, a canine companion. There didn't seem to be many dogs anywhere in Nowhere. Sure, there was Shirley the Medium, but she wasn't the type who'd strike up a long conversation.

  
  


Muriel came up out of the basement. "Well, my laundry's done. Will you help me make some lunch, Courage?"

"Mm-hm!" answered Courage and they entered the kitchen. 

  
  


A short while later, Muriel finished putting the last of the muffin batter into the muffin tray. "These muffins will go great with my new vinegar sprinkles."

Courage was just about to express his disgust when, suddenly, his head jerked up. As Muriel was putting the tray in the oven, Courage heard a faint sound outside. He quirked up an ear. The sound grew louder. Was it...? Yes! It was a car engine! A car was coming at last!

  
  


Courage pulled on Muriel's apron and tried to tell her about the car. "What's wrong, Courage?"

But before Courage could express anything, Eustace walked into the room and shouted, "Muriel! What did ye do with me paper?"

  
  


Muriel didn't answer because just at that moment there was a loud "POP-POW!!" outside. The three residents of the farmhouse ran toward the window and looked outside. A station wagon was slowing down, with all four tires punctured.

"Visitors!" shouted Eustace with great gusto. "Me plan worked! We finally got visitors! Yippee!" He jumped into the air and clicked his heels.

"Hooray!" proclaimed Muriel.

Courage would've joined in, but he held back and whined. He remembered all the times some stranger came up to his door, and some of the stuff they did...

Courage howled. "Oh, don't worry," said Muriel. "I'm sure they'll be friendly."

"Yeah. Right," muttered Courage.

"C'mon!" announced Eustace. "Let's quit yappin' and introduce ourselves!" Eustace and Muriel headed toward the door, with Courage following behind, reluctantly.

  
  


*****

  
  


"Is everyone alright?" asked an exasperated Carl. 

"Katie, are you OK, honey?" asked a concerned Diane.

"Chill, Mom, it's just a flat tire," said Kevin, in a dull tone of voice.

"Are you OK, Mr. Furry? I'm OK," said Katie to her bear.

"I'll go check on the damage," said the father and got out of the car. His wife followed.

The man walked all the way around the car with his wife. He then kicked the rear bumper.

"All flat. They're all flat!!!" Carl yelled.

"Now, dear..." began his wife.

"And we used our spare tire from that flat we had in St. Louis! How...?" His eyes discovered the spike strip. "How in the ever-lovin' world did THAT get there?!?!"

"Hey, Dad," called Kevin, his head out the window. "Maybe you could ask them."

  
  


Kevin's parents turned to where he was pointing. A farmyard lay before them on the side of the road. It had a farmhouse, barn, windmill, chicken coop, and a water pump. Emerging from the house was an old couple and a little pink dog.

  
  


"Car trouble, mister?" asked Eustace with a smile on his face.

Carl stormed up to the farmer. "Do you know who put that spike strip there?" he demanded angrily.

Fortunately, Eustace was prepared for this. "Why, yes!" he said, with fake surprise. "There was police chase yesterday and they through that strip on the road to stop it. Darn cops must've forgot about it. Heh heh."

Courage held his breath, hoping this stranger would buy it. Luckily, he did. "Well, the cops sure aren't very observant around here."

His wife made a noise in her throat, which indicated that he had forgotten his manners.

"Oh! My name is Carl. Carl Henderson. This is my wife, Diane. In the car, are Kevin and Katie. And our dog, Sandy."

  
  


Eustace's smile fell. He hated kids, and another dog was unthinkable! Courage, on the other hand, was beaming with delight. At last! Another dog to talk to!

  
  


"My name is Muriel Baggs," said Muriel. "This is my husband Eustace and our dog, Courage." Courage looked at the strangers with a blank face.

Carl became agitated again. "Well, now that the introductions are through, maybe you could tell us where we could get our car fixed." Diane cast her husband a rude glance.

Eustace was prepared for this, too. "Sorry. Nearest car shop is 15 miles down the road. I'd drive you there, but me truck ain't workin' either. Looks like you'll be staying with us for a while."

Carl was not pleased with this and was about to express his thoughts, when his wife cut in, saying, "I think it's great! We're heading to California, but we aren't on any deadline. I think a day or two here would be (glaring at Carl) a break from the ordinary, right dear?"

Carl sighs. "Right, honey."

  
  


As Eustace went to throw away the spike strip, Muriel and Courage followed Diane to the car. "OK, kids," said Diane. "We're going to park ourselves here for a day or two. Is that OK?"

Katie nodded, but Kevin nodded harder, once again not believing his incredible luck.

Courage looked on as the kids came out of the car. He was pleased when Katie said, "Doggie!" and patted him on the head. However, she was more interested with her teddy bear than with Courage and headed toward the house. Next, came Kevin. Courage started shaking with nervousness. Kevin had put on a leather jacket. That, combined with his black hair and sunglasses, made him look rather evil. He just said, "Yo, dog," to Courage.

Courage gulped. To calm his nerves, he took out a yo-yo from his hidden back pocket and played with it. He didn't get very far when Kevin suddenly turned back to the car and said "You can come out now, Sandy." 

And out jumped Sandy.

  
  
  
  


Courage looked up and froze. The yo-yo fell from his paw as he saw what stood before him.

  
  
  
  


Surveying the landscape was Sandy, the Henderson's female dog. She was about Courage's age and looked very similar to Courage. So much, in fact, that for a moment, Courage thought they were related. But Courage was downwind from her, and Sandy's scent told him that this was not so. Her fur was maroon-colored, a few shades darker than Courage's. Her eyes were emerald green, and there was a small black spot on her back. In fact, the only indications that she was a girl were her eyelashes and a small gold bracelet on her left wrist.

  
  


Courage's eyes widened and his heart rate increased....but surprisingly, not from fear! To anybody else, Sandy was just a dog, but to Courage, she was, at this moment, an angel.

  
  


"What a desolate place," Sandy said to herself. She looked to the left and then in the direction where Courage was standing. Or used to be standing. She was met with only a yo-yo on the ground. 

Courage had dashed behind the car to hide. He had never in his wildest dreams expected something like THIS to happen! Courage realized that his sudden feelings toward Sandy were similar to those toward Muriel, but different somehow. Even now, he could here Muriel calling him to introduce himself to Sandy. Courage thought that he would faint, but he told himself that he was being cowardly again...and to a girl, of all things! So, mustering up all his available courage and gulping, he headed around the car; licking his paw along the way and running it through the fur on the top of his head.

  
  


"This is my dog, Courage," said Muriel.

  
  


"Hi," said Courage to Sandy.

  
  


Sandy was rather surprised by this handsome dog who looked just like her. All she could get out was a shy "Hi."

  
  


With that, everyone headed into the house, except for Eustace and Carl, who wheeled the station wagon next to Eustace's truck.

  
  
  
  


Muriel's muffins were done. Everyone helped themselves. Everyone, that is, except Courage. His stomach was too full of butterflies. He could not seem to take his eyes off of Sandy. Courage wondered what on Earth was happening to him.

  
  


As the adults talked about themselves and Katie talked to her bear, a queer thing happened between Sandy and Kevin. It happened when Kevin accidently dropped a chunk of muffin onto Sandy's head. Instead, of barking or nudging Kevin's leg, she motioned Kevin towards her and whispered something into his ear! Kevin then announced to everyone that he was going to wash Sandy out by the water pump. He got up and walked out the door with Sandy.

  
  


Courage began to get scared again. Had Sandy actually talked to Kevin? Did he understand what she was saying? Courage went out the door toward the water pump to find out. When he turned around a corner of the house, he stopped. What Courage saw pleased him so much, he had to hang onto the drainpipe to keep from falling over.

  
  


Kevin was at the water pump, pumping water onto Sandy, and what a sight she was! She acted as if she was in a shower, her paws cleaning her ears, her face, her entire body. Whatever feelings began leaking out of Courage before were in full force now! His heart rate, blood temperature, and breathing were all increasing at an alarming rate. More obvious were the hearts appearing in Courage's eyes and tiny hearts floating off of Courage's fur and popping shortly afterwards. Courage let out a long sigh. "She's amazing," he mumbled to himself.

  
  


"Hey dog!" shouted a voice from behind him. It was Eustace, of course. "I need ya to help me find me paper!"

  
  


Courage instantly snapped back to normal. He followed Eustace, glancing back once to find Sandy and Kevin looking back at him with curious faces.

  
  


"I wonder what THAT was all about." said Sandy.

  
  


Kevin looked at Courage and then to Sandy and then smiled a knowing smile.

  
  


Coming soon...Chapter 4!

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	4. As the Day Progressed

From the author: Sorry the following chapters took so long to write. Blame my parents. ("No internet for a week, young man!")

  
  


Chapter 4: As the Day Progressed

  
  


As the day progressed, the Hendersons grew more accustomed to their surroundings. The entire family took up residence in the basement, which was as large as the kitchen and living room combined. At first, Muriel objected to them being in such bland surroundings, but the Hendersons understood that there was no other place in the house they could stay. "Besides," as Carl put it, "It's a lot better than some of the motels we've been to so far." Their luggage was stored inside large drawers next to the washing machine. For beds, the Hendersons used sleeping bags, except for Kevin, who insisted on using Courage's cot.

  
  


After the family settled in, Muriel thought it would be a good idea if she gave the Hendersons a tour of the farmyard. Courage liked the idea, but Eustace didn't. "I'd rather read me paper," he said, stubbornly. So Muriel and Courage showed the Hendersons around the house. Muriel pointed out nearly everything about the kitchen, living room, bedroom, and bathroom (the only one in the house!) Then, she briefly showed them the attic. Kevin displayed a look of thoughtfulness when he saw Courage's computer before following his family back downstairs.

  
  


Once downstairs, Muriel had another idea. "Courage, why don't you show the kids around outside while I talk to Carl and Diane?" 

Courage whined. There really wasn't anything outside worth touring, except the barn, henhouse, and windmill. But he instantly changed his mind when Kevin said, "Sure. Sandy can come with us."

  
  


Kevin, his little sister Katie, Courage, and Sandy went to the windmill first. There was a soft breeze blowing the windmill blades around and around, making a squeaking sound. After a while, Courage started to lead the group toward the henhouse when Katie suddenly said to her teddy bear, "Look, Mr. Furry! Funny markings!" and pointed up toward the rear of the windmill. Courage whined again when he saw what Katie was pointing at: strange markings on the backside of the blades.

"I wonder how those got there," muttered Kevin.

Courage shivered, remembering the horrible ordeal he had involving those signs. But he didn't want to appear frightened to them (especially to Sandy), so he led the group to the henhouse and then to the barn.

  
  


The inside of the barn was very spacious. There were straw bales on the floor, and the smell of straw was overwhelming. Katie took Mr. Furry to a straw bale and started decorating him. Courage looked up and saw ropes hanging from the ceiling. Those ropes brought back fond memories of that bell-playing hunchback who taught Courage how to swing from the ropes like a trapeze artist.

  
  


Suddenly, Courage had an idea. "Watch this!" he said to Sandy and climbed a ladder leading up to a loft. From there, he took a flying leap and started swinging from rope to rope, laughing with excitement.

Kevin leaned down toward Sandy. "I think he's trying to impress you," said Kevin, grinning. Sandy glared at him, but as she continued to watch Courage, she realized Kevin was right. She smiled up at the strange dog with admiration.

"Funny doggie," laughed Katie to Mr. Furry.

  
  


By the time the four of them returned to the house, Muriel was cooking dinner with Carl and Diane, while Eustace was watching TV. 

"Kids, dinner will be ready in half an hour," said their mother. "Could you two help set the table and clean up a bit?"

Kevin and Katie reluctantly agreed. Courage and Sandy also helped.

  
  


The Hendersons had brought with them a lot of food for their trip. They brought pork chops, mashed potatoes, and a salad. And Muriel helped prepare all of it in her kitchen. It turned out the Hendersons loved olive oil as much as Muriel loved vinegar, so they combined these liquids to make a lovely salad dressing. The table was just large enough to seat six, and when the food was placed on the table, everyone was seated.

  
  


Dinner was phenomenal. Muriel agreed that the Hendersons outdid themselves while cooking. Even Eustace made a rare positive remark about the food! Meanwhile, Courage and Sandy each had their own corresponding dogfoods. As Sandy ate, Courage began wondering what flavor Sandy's dogfood was. This sparked another idea to gain Sandy's friendship. Courage pushed his bowl toward Sandy and asked, "Trade?"

Sandy stopped eating, her eyes widening. She had never met a dog in her life that displayed such an act of kindness toward her! Blushing slightly, she traded dogfoods with Courage. She became so lost in thought over Courage that she didn't even mind the taste of his vinegar-topped, liver-flavored dogfood. As for Courage, a smile was on his face, because Sandy's cinnamon flavored dogfood was to his taste buds as Sandy was to his eyes.

  
  


A couple uneventful hours later, it had gotten dark outside, and the Hendersons started to get ready to go to bed. Katie was getting into her pajamas, and Kevin was on his internet-ready laptop. Carl and Diane were on the other side of the room, unfolding the covers. "So, what do think about these folks?" asked Diane to her husband.

"Muriel is OK, but I've never met such a grumpy old man," replied Carl. "MY father wasn't even as wiley as he is!"

"Well, they tend to get that way at their age, dear."

"Other than that, this place isn't half bad."

"I like it!" exclaimed Katie, who was scratching Sandy's tummy.

Diane smiled at her daughter, then to her son, who mumbled, "Yeah, it's cool."

Carl frowned. "I swear, talking to that boy is like talking to a brick wall, sometimes."

"Well, teens will be teens," answered Diane. As they made the bed, Diane said to her husband, "Y'know it's funny. Even though this is the first time we've been in these strangers' house..."

  
  


"...it's almost as if I've met them before, or something," Eustace said to Muriel.

Sitting up in bed, Muriel responded, "I know. It's because they're so friendly!"

Next to her, Eustace continued. "Maybe it's the way their faces are shaped..."

"Why are you asking yourself these silly questions?" asked Muriel. "You've been wanting visitors to come by our house, and when they do, you start complaining about them!"

"I'd be just fine around them if they didn't bring along those meddling kids and their stupid dog," grumbled Eustace.

Muriel sighed with annoyance.

  
  


In the attic, Courage was looking at the stars outside the window. He thought the Hendersons were a very nice family, except for Kevin, who acted a little strange at times. And, of course, Sandy was also on his mind. It seemed as though Courage could never figure out what to say to her. Tomorrow, he promised, he would try and strike up a decent conversation with her. He looked at the stars and, in his mind, made a constellation of Sandy in them. Tomorrow, he-

  
  


Courage froze. In the window's reflection, he saw his computer screen. He had turned his computer on before looking out the window. Now, in the middle of the screen, he saw, once more, the black instant messenger box. His breath quickened and began fogging up the window. Courage whirled around and read what was displayed: 2 DAYS LEFT. THE DOLLAR IS THE KEY.

  
  


The dollar is the key. Courage's eyes landed on the slip of paper next to his computer that had last night's creepy message on it. Just as he thought. That sentence was also in last night's message! The dog crumpled up the paper and threw it away. He knew now that this was some type of riddle. Courage looked down at his keyboard and typed in: WHO ARE YOU??!! before pressing Enter.

  
  


Five minutes went by and Courage received no response. Losing patience, the dog typed in: WHERE ARE YOU?!! and pressed Enter. This time, he received a very chilling response:

  
  


I'M CLOSER THAN YOU THINK.

  
  


The screen went black. Courage turned the screen back on, and the message box was gone... again.

Courage howled with fright. Was this all real? Who was this person? In 2 days, something bad was going to happen. And he didn't even know what it would be!

"Hey," said the computer's voice, sleepily. "Do you know who's been talking to you?"

Courage typed in a rude remark.

"Sheesh," replied the computer sarcastically. "I'm sorry I asked."

With that, Courage abruptly switched off the computer. Shivering, Courage started toward Eustace and Muriel's bedroom, knowing that only lying on their bed would get Courage to sleep now.

  
  


"Hey, son!" shouted Carl.

In a blink, Kevin switched off his laptop and closed it. "Yeah, Dad?"

"Put your computer away. It's time to go to sleep."

"OK, Dad," said Kevin, sighing. Tossing his laptop aside, he crawled into the cot and fell asleep.

  
  


Up next...Chapter 5: The Midnight Conversation

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	5. The Midnight Conversation

Chapter 5: The Midnight Conversation

  
  


Kevin looked around. He was standing on the dock of a northeastern seaside town. A large ship was unloading passengers onto the dock. Judging from their clothes and accents, they appeared to be Scottish immigrants. Kevin wondered where they were going, when a small boy in front of him tripped and fell. His glasses flew away from him. 

"Help! I can't see!" yelled the boy, but his voice was lost in the crowd. Kevin went over to the glasses, but another small boy ran out and grabbed them first. This boy walked up to the first boy. "Here ye go," he said, and gave the glasses to it's owner. 

"Thank ye kindly!" said the bespectacled boy, excitedly. "How can I ever repay ye?" 

"Well," said the other boy, "How about I give ye this?" He reached into his pocket and gave the boy with the glasses a shiny silver dollar. "Buy your family a loaf of bread with it."

"Nay, sir," answered the bespectacled boy. "I'm going to keep this dollar for the rest of me life. By the way, my name is Williams. Joseph Williams."

"Reginald Baggs," said the other boy, and they shook hands.

As Kevin observed each boy's family run towards them, he heard Reginald say, "My folks are going to live on Baxter Street."

"Really?" asked Joseph. "My folks are going to live there as well!..."

  
  


The next thing Kevin knew, he was in a field. In the distance, there lay a very respectable-sized town surrounded by several oil derricks. He whirled around and saw an old man hoeing in the middle of the field. Kevin walked up to him and introduced himself, but the old man took no notice. Suddenly, Kevin saw another old man coming from the direction of the town. The first man put his hoe down. 

"Hello there, Joseph. How are ye?" asked the hoeing man.

"Um...just fine, Reginald. How's business?" Kevin didn't like Joseph's tone of voice.

"Dandy! Profits are up, and I just might be made 'STATE Head of Finances' by year's end! I'm just hoeing out here in case I accidently hit another oil vein. Heh heh heh."

Kevin observed Joseph, who was pawing at the ground and fingering something behind his back.

"Remember that old silver dollar you gave me, Reginald? I'm, uh, thinking of keeping it in a town museum, once it's built." As he was talking, Joseph slowly began moving behind Reginald, who was too busy hoeing to notice.

"I think that's a good idea," said Reginald. 

Then, to Kevin's horror, Joseph brought his hand out from behind his back, revealing a long dagger being gripped in the hand. As Joseph aimed the dagger towards Reginald's back, Reginald said, "Y'know, I enjoy being so wealthy. It's given me such joy to share a portion of my profits to everyone in town-..."

Kevin whirled around and closed his eyes, but he could still hear the horrible deed being done behind him. When he turned back, he saw the body of Reginald Baggs on the ground with fatal wounds in his back. Joseph breathed heavily, his dagger stained red with blood.

"Yeah, you gave your glorious profits away, Reginald," heaved Joseph. "To everyone but me!"

With that, Joseph threw the knife into the sand next to Reginald and ran off in the direction of Joseph's house... 

  
  


Kevin blinked his eyes. Now he was in front of a cemetery closer to the rickety town. He slowly walked in and read some of the gravestone's names. Lila Phillis, Doug Mitchelson, and Benton Tarantella, to name a few. Finally, Kevin arrived at a marvelous, new headstone adorned with bouquets of flowers. The headstone read:

REGINALD BAGGS

(1792-1852)

THE FOUNDER OF NOWHERE

R.I.P.

  
  


As Kevin left the cemetery, a sign caught his eye. It read: "Future sight of farmyard development. Cemetery to be moved to new location." Kevin knew, in the back of his mind, that the tombstones would be moved, but not the graves themselves! Then, for some reason, Kevin started running toward town. He ran clear through it, straight to the other side...without meeting another person or feeling tired at all! When he finally stopped, it was in front of a rectangular mound of dirt. An unmarked grave! Confused, Kevin looked skyward and saw something written in the sky! It was a bunch of letters, followed by an '@' sign and then a website company followed by a '.com'. It was an e-mail address!...

  
  


******

  
  


Kevin woke up on Courage's cot, gasping for air in the pitch dark basement. "The same dream," Kevin whispered to himself. This had been going on for several weeks, and this was the longest one yet! He was sweating bullets, and tossed the blanket aside.

  
  


A familiar voice whispered his name in the darkness.

"Kevin?" she asked. "Did it happen again?"

"Yeah," Kevin answered. "It won't be long now."

"I wish it would hurry up." the voice continued. Then maybe those dreams of yours will stop."

"Well, I've already figured out most of the dream. I just need to go back to that museum one more time."

"Why? You've been there already!"

"Ssshhh. I know, but I didn't have enough time to go through it all because of my little sister. Our family is in danger, and so is this other family too."

"Courage?"

"Yes, Courage. And Eustace. And Muriel, if I don't figure out what's going on."

There was silence for a while. Then:

"Kevin? Have you figured out what the dream's e-mail address is addressed to?"

"You asked me that last night, remember? Remember my answer?"

"Oh yeah. I remember. Kind of a lucky shot, huh?"

"Yeah. I just need to get some more sleep. Nightmare or no nightmare."

  
  


Kevin reached out and pulled the covers back over him.

"Goodnight, Kevin," said the voice in the dark.

"Goodnight, Sandy."

  
  


EGAD! Kevin can talk to Sandy! How did this happen?? Keep reading to find out!

  
  
  
  


Next chapter....Chapter 6: Back to the Museum

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	6. Back to the Museum

Chapter 6: Back to the Museum

  
  


"Muriel!!"

Courage awoke to Eustace's shouting. The dog stretched out on his masters' bed. 

"What is it, Eustace?" asked Muriel, who was just waking up.

Eustace started pounding on the bathroom door. The shower was on inside. "One of our nosy visitors has been in there almost fifteen minutes! Stupid bathroom!"

"Well, Eustace, I guess we'll just have to share it with them until they leave," replied Muriel.

"Nnrgh," groaned Eustace. "Should've built an outhouse when I had the chance." 

He walked out of the room 

  
  


During breakfast, Courage found out that the Hendersons would be in town today. "We might need some more supplies for the trip ahead," said Diane. "Plus, my brother and his wife might like a house-warming gift or two from a quiet old town such as Nowhere."

"And since I'm out of vinegar, I suppose I should come to," said Muriel. "Eustace, the Hendersons are probably going to eat out for lunch. Maybe dinner as well, so you'll have to fix yourself something." Eustace couldn't believe his rotten luck. He didn't like the idea of having to cook his own meals.

Courage didn't like the fact that Sandy was going with them. How could he talk to her if she was going to be gone all day?

  
  


Of course, how could the Hendersons even get to town when their car was out of commission? Muriel came up with the only alternative: take Eustace's truck. Eustace put up a fit about this decision, but, because he was outnumbered, allowed them to go. So, after breakfast, Muriel, Diane, and Katie got into the front of the truck, while the rest of the Hendersons got in the back. Muriel shifted the clutch, and the truck headed down the road toward Nowhere.

Eustace went back into the house and called out Courage's name (so he could ridicule him again), but Courage was nowhere in sight. After finding out he was going to be stuck with Eustace for the rest of the day, Courage wisely locked himself in the attic with a bag of chips to keep from going hungry.

Eustace fell into his chair and turned on the TV. "Stupid dog," he muttered.

  
  


In the town of Nowhere, a pickup truck was parked in a parking lot. The truck's occupants went in different directions. Muriel went to the grocery store. Carl and Diane Henderson went to a gift shop before rendezvousing with the Hendersons at a local pay phone. Kevin, Katie, and Sandy went to the Nowhere Historical Museum.

  
  


As they entered the museum, Kevin and Katie once again saw the displays in the same places as before. The portraits. The displays. The sliver dollar in the center of it all.

Just then, the man behind the gift shop's desk walked up to them. He was probably the curator, since there was no one else there. "Sorry, kids. No dogs allowed."

So Kevin tied up Sandy to a pole outside and apologized to her.

  
  


Back inside, Kevin walked by the displays, reading each one of them. Katie spent the time with Mr. Furry, talking to him and answering back for him. Kevin at last came to the giant portraits of Joseph Williams and Reginald Baggs. As he looked at them, Kevin saw some peculiarities about them. First of all, Reginald's chin was prominently protruding from his face. His nose was rather pointed, and the top of his head was incredibly round....sort of like that old man, Eustace. And, come to think of it, wasn't Eustace's last name "Baggs"? Kevin, therefore, came to the correct conclusion that Reginald and Eustace Baggs were related! Probably a grandfather or great-grandfather. Kevin smiled at figuring it out, and then became puzzled. Why hasn't Eustace mentioned anything about this? Answering his own question, Kevin decided Eustace was too shy (ashamed? afraid?) to say anything about his past.

Then, he saw the portrait of Joseph Williams. Kevin stared at it a long time. If he used his imagination, he could alter the portrait's appearance. He applied a few facial changes in his mind and saw, to his amazement, that the end result looked just like...

  
  


A hand tugged on Kevin's pant leg, startling him. It was Katie. "I'm hungry," she said.

Shakily, Kevin directed his little sister out of the museum. "Let's go find Mom and Dad at the grocery store," said Kevin as he looked back to the silver dollar, somehow knowing that this was not the last time he would see it.

As Katie ran on ahead, Kevin untied Sandy and told her about his discovery. A look of amazement crossed her face, but Kevin put a finger to his lips and said "Sssshhh" to keep the information confidential. Together, they walked toward the grocery store with worried expressions on both of their faces.

  
  


******

  
  


After lunch, the Hendersons wanted a tour of the town. Fortunately, Nowhere had a tour-group company that was almost out of work. The Hendersons enjoyed learning about the town's landmarks and history. Especially Kevin and his mother, Diane. (You know, by now, why Kevin's interested. As for Diane, well, you'll find out in a few chapters). By the time the tour was over, it was time for dinner. The Hendersons and Muriel went to eat at a homestyle restaurant. They even allowed Sandy inside! Everyone had a grand time talking about everything and nothing. After dinner, they headed back to Muriel's house. 

  
  


"We're back, Eustace!" cried Muriel, her arms full of groceries. It was already dark by the time they got back. "Did you have dinner?"

"Yeah. Had me some leftovers," Eustace said as a bag of groceries was placed in his arms.

The Hendersons came into the house single file, each with a bag of groceries. At the top of the stairs, Courage looked on. When they were all in the kitchen, Courage went down the stairs. He was greeted by Katie and her parents, each of them patting him on the head. Courage turned to wave back at them as they headed down into the basement, when he bumped into Eustace, who was just coming out of the kitchen.

"Stupid dog!" Eustace shouted. "Bump into me will ye?"

Eustace quickly turned his back to Courage and fiddled with something. At this exact moment, Kevin and Sandy emerged from the kitchen. "Hey Eus-," began Kevin, when suddenly...

  
  


BOOGA BOOGA BOOGA!!!

  
  


Eustace turned around wearing a horrible, bug-eyed, green mask! Kevin and Sandy were startled, but Courage was scared out of his wits! He let out a shriek of horror. 

"Aaaauugghh!!!" 

Courage then ran as fast as his paws could carry him into the kitchen. He opened a cupboard under the sink and hid inside it, closing the door behind him.

Eustace laughed and laughed as he went upstairs.

  
  


Kevin and Sandy were stunned. They couldn't believe this man's cruelty toward Courage!

Kevin turned toward Sandy. "No wonder that man doesn't like to talk about his family!"

Sandy nodded with shock. Kevin thought some more and said, "It's too bad we can't give that dog some puppy Prozac or something."

Sandy cast Kevin a mean glance.

"Hey, I'm just joking. Sorry," said Kevin, apologizing. "I'm...uh...gonna take a shower now." And with that he headed upstairs.

  
  


Sandy sighed and looked inside the kitchen. She heard whimpering coming from inside the cupboard under the sink. With a look of heartfelt concern, Sandy entered the kitchen and walked toward the cupboard.

  
  


Next up...Chapter 7: Kevin's Gift 


	7. Kevin's Gift

Chapter 7: Kevin's Gift

  
  


Inside the cupboard, Courage huddled by himself in a corner, shaking with fright. He couldn't believe what a coward he had just been. Not only did he fall victim to Eustace's freaky green mask (again), but he did so in front of Kevin and Sandy! What were they going to think of him now? "They'll probably think I'm a loser," thought Courage to himself. "A big, scaredy-cat loser." Courage buried his face in his paws and whined pitifully.

  
  


"Courage?" asked Sandy. She was standing in front of the cupboard. "Courage, are you OK?"

"Go away," moaned Courage.

"Courage, its OK. Everything's fine. Eustace is gone now. Why don't you come out?"

"I don't feel like it," said Courage. His voice was beginning to crack.

Sandy felt frustrated. She wanted to help Courage. She wanted to know why he was so fearful of the littlest things. If only he didn't act so stubborn right now.

"Well, I guess you'll come out when you feel like it," said Sandy, with a hint of irritation in her voice. She turned and headed toward the basement.

That irritation was multiplied tenfold inside Courage. He knew that he just ruined his chances with Sandy. "Why?" whispered Courage, tears welling in his eyes. "Why must I be so afraid?" With that, he folded his arms across the pipe leading up to the sink and laid his head on them. Courage started crying, feeling lower than he had ever felt in his entire life.

  
  


A half hour later, Courage emerged from the cupboard. He was feeling better. A little. His eyes were red and his fur was wet with tears. He saw a towel hanging from the oven handle and dried himself. Then he slowly walked into the living room. He got up onto the sofa and sat on it. Courage was still feeling down. He was trying to think of ways to apologize to Sandy, when he heard footsteps coming down the stairs. He turned and saw Kevin, his hair still wet from having just taken a shower. His father, Carl, came out of the basement. 

"Your turn, Dad."

"Thanks, son." Carl headed upstairs toward the shower.

Kevin sat down next to Courage to rest.

Courage didn't pay any attention to him. He started muttering to himself. "I wish I wasn't so afraid sometimes," he said to himself.

Beside him, Kevin turned and looked at him with a concerned look on his face.

Courage took no notice and continued. "Sometimes I wish I could just choose what my emotions would be instead of being so...so spontaneous."

  
  


Kevin took his eyes off Courage and stared off into the distance. "Tell me about it," said Kevin, sarcastically.

  
  


Courage drew in another breath to say more when he stopped. His eyes widened. Did what he think just happened actually happen??? Slowly, he turned to see Kevin staring straight at him.

"Well?" asked Kevin, inquisitively.

  
  


There was no way control it. Courage screamed again. 

"AAAAAAUUUGH!!!"

  
  


Kevin was slightly startled by the sudden noise.

Courage began breathing normally again, but his voice was still shaking. 

"You...you can...understand me?"

Kevin started to act a little embarrassed. "Well...yeah."

Courage didn't know what to say. This was, by far, one of the oddest moments of his life; meeting somebody who could talk to dogs!

"How?" asked Courage. It was the only question he could think of.

Kevin sighed. "I dunno. I just......don't know. It started when I was able to talk, but I didn't understand what was going on until I was ten. By then, people started to think I was strange or something, so from then on, I kept my special ability a secret. My family adopted Sandy four years ago when she was a puppy, and the two of us...I dunno...connected. I can't really find the words to describe it. It's sort of like Sandy and I are mutual partners, I guess. When she started talking to you I...(Kevin felt really embarrassed about saying this)...felt a little jealous, I guess. But Sandy made it clear to me that I didn't need to be that way. She's only had very little interaction with other dogs, and she just wanted to be a good friend to you, Courage."

  
  


Courage let all this information sink in and sighed sadly. "It sure doesn't seem like it now."

Kevin nodded. "Yes, I had a feeling that this would happen. Listen, Sandy is a very understanding canine. I'm sure if you just talked to her, or something, she'd reconsider your feelings toward her. As for your phobias, I don't know whether it's a mental problem, past experiences, or... whatever that's to blame. You need to learn how to control that fear. Otherwise, your life will be miserable."

Courage thought about it. Of course, his current life could be viewed as miserable to some people, but Courage knew that there were a lot of people (and dogs) who were much worse off than him.

  
  


Kevin began to get up and head for the kitchen.

"Kevin?" asked Courage.

Kevin turned around. "Yeah?"

Courage couldn't help but smile. "This is so....weird."

For the first time in a long while, Kevin smiled back. "Hey, I've gotten used to it," he said and walked into the kitchen.

  
  


Courage was feeling much better than he did before. He now began thinking of how to talk to Sandy. Where would be the right place to do so? Courage walked over to the window and looked up at the night sky. The stars and moon were both shining like diamonds in the sky.

"I'll bet Sandy's never seen a sky like that," said Courage, smiling. He now knew the perfect scenario.

  
  


Stay tuned for Chapter 8: Under the Stars (the serious conversation between Courage and Sandy.)

  
  



	8. Under the Stars

Chapter 8: Under the Stars

  
  


"No peeking," said Courage. He was leading Sandy out the front door. Sandy's paws were covering her eyes. Courage guided her from behind, his paws on her shoulders, as they carefully descended the front steps. 

"C'mon, Courage," giggled Sandy. "What's going on?"

"Hang on. Hang on," replied Courage, a smile on his face. He led Sandy about fifty feet away from the house and stopped. "Okay, now look down."

Sandy looked down, eyes still covered. "Now," said Courage. Sandy drew her paws away from her eyes and opened them. To her puzzlement, there lay a simple log on the ground in front of them.

"A log?" asked Sandy, her smile fading.

"Wait, wait," said Courage, grinning. "I want you to slowly...very slowly..." His voice became a whisper. "...Look up."

Sandy slowly tilted her head upward. Her eyes viewed the log, the distant ground, the horizon, the-

Sandy gasped. "Oh my.....wow," she whispered with amazement.

  
  


The cloudless night sky above her was glittered with a dazzling array of stars; stars that Sandy had never seen shine so brightly! Every planet, every nebula, every heavenly body was visible. The full moon was high in the sky, it's face casting a light that left dim shadows on anything standing. It was one of the most beautiful spectacles that Sandy (or anybody) could ever see.

  
  


Sandy stared up at the sky in awe. "Have you ever seen anything so beautiful in your entire life?" she asked Courage.

Courage desperately wanted to answer "You", but didn't, for fear of being too forward. So he walked over to the log and sat on it. A moment later, Sandy sat next to him.

Neither of them said anything for a moment. Finally, Courage began.

  
  


"Kevin told me about his, um, special ability."

"Really?" asked Sandy, who was rather surprised that Kevin would reveal his secret to anyone.

Courage stared at the ground in front of him. "Yeah, it must be really freaky for someone to have a power like that." 

"Why? You think he's a superhero or something?" said Sandy, smiling.

"No, no. It's just..." Courage looked up at Sandy. "...I can't even begin to imagine what his life must've been like. It probably felt like a nightmare at times."

"Yeah," agreed Sandy. Then she paused. "Wait, did he tell you about the nightmares?"

Courage cocked his head to the side to show confusion. "What nightmares?"

Sandy sighed. "For the past several months, Kevin has been having these strange nightmares. I've only recently discovered from him that they're all about the town of Nowhere's history." Courage's eyes widened as she said that. "They seem to revolve around the town's first great crime: the killing of co-founder Reginald Baggs by his partner Joseph Williams."

Courage couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Baggs? You mean...?"

"Yes. Eustace's grandfather. He helped found the town of Nowhere. Didn't Eustace tell you any of this?"

Courage just looked at her with a quirked eyebrow. "Why would he tell me anything, except how stupid I am?"

"I don't think you are," said Sandy. "I think you're very smart." She was going to continue but was stopped by the expression on Courage's face. "What's wrong?"

Courage looked like he was about to cry from sheer joy. His eyes became glassy and water-filled, and a wavy smile spread across his face. "N-nobody's ever said that to me before, except Muriel." He wiped his eyes with his paws and calmed down. "Thank you."

"You're welcome," was his answer.

  
  


They stopped talking for a minute, then Courage stiffened. He began to remember something. "I...I can recall a while ago, when I first came to Nowhere, about this museum..."

"Yes, Kevin and I went there earlier today and yesterday too."

"I remember seeing this coin in the middle of the room and...and these two portraits on the wall! One of them looked just like Eustace!"

"Yes," replied Sandy. "That was Reginald Baggs."

"I remember that place! Muriel drove me there once when I was little. I had such a rough life when I was little."

"How so? Could you tell me about it?" asked Sandy.

  
  


Courage sighed sadly. He never liked talking about his past. It was too painful. But Sandy seemed interested, so Courage gulped down his sorrow and turned to Sandy.

"My canine parents were the most...loving parents a dog could wish for. I was always a little clumsy when I was little. I'd get my head stuck in something or my diaper would get snagged on a tree or something. But no matter what, my parents always picked me up and comforted me. Then one day..." Courage's throat was getting tight so he coughed. "...One day, my parents and I went to the veterinarian and the vet led my parents through a door. I followed them. I discovered that the vet was actually conducting experiments to send dogs into outer space to colonize other planets. He had a rocket and everything. He threw my parents into the rocket and came after me. I ran into a garbage chute that dropped me into a nearby alley outside. Then,..." (Courage was on the verge of tears by this point) "...then, I heard a roar behind me. I turned and saw the rocket, with my parents inside it, go up into the sky. I never...saw...my parents again..." Courage abruptly broke down at that point. Sandy leaned over and hugged him. Courage began bawling on her shoulder while she tried her best to comfort him. After a minute, Courage got himself under control again.

"I was lucky enough to have Muriel discover me in that alley. I never think about what would happen if she never came."

"So what happened about that evil vet?"asked Sandy.

"Well, (sniff) not too long ago, my masters took me to that same veterinarian. It was deja vu all over again, only this time, he wanted to send either me or Eustace and Muriel. I ended up sending him into space instead."

Courage stood up and looked up into the sky, frowning. A soft growl developed in his throat. "He's probably on the same planet where his experimental subjects are. I hope my parents and all those other dogs are giving him what he deserves." Courage sat back down and massaged his head. He had never anticipated that this conversation would become so intense.

  
  


Sandy sighed. "Well, my life hasn't been too glamourous either. You see, I was born by the side of a road and was left there. Just like that. It seemed like forever until a car came up and dropped me off at the pound. I stayed there for two weeks. Then,..." Sandy started shivering as she said this. "...then came the day they were going to take me inside a room and...you know. But just before I was scheduled to go, a boy in his early teens came up to my cage and looked down at me. I looked back at him, and we...I can't explain it...we just bonded at that moment."

"Yeah, Kevin told me about that," said Courage.

"Kevin eventually gave me this." Sandy showed Courage her bracelet that rested on her wrist. "It symbolizes the age-old relationship between a boy and his dog. So, that, basically, is how I came to live with the Hendersons," said Sandy, a weak smile on her face.

  
  


After a moment, Sandy said, "Um, Courage, I know you seem a little frightened about certain things all the time."

Courage winced. He hoped Sandy would avoid this subject. She continued. "From what you've told me tonight, it seems like your past history is a partial cause for your fear."

Courage thought about this. "Well, Kevin told me something about controlling my fear, but it seems like an impossibility to me."

"C'mon," said Sandy. "Hasn't there been times when you forgot about your fear?"

"Yeah," said Courage, and he spent the next several minutes describing to Sandy some past situations when Muriel was in trouble, and Courage had to save her.

When Courage was done, Sandy thought for a minute and said, "I seems as though, ironic as this may sound, that you are the most bravest when things are the most scariest. And that's a quality that I find very admirable in a dog like you."

Courage blushed at the compliment with a sheepish smile on his face. He looked into Sandy's eyes, those calm green eyes, and felt like he could get lost in them. He quickly turned and looked into the night sky to keep from embarrassing himself.

As he tried to locate constellations, he felt something on his paw. Courage looked down and saw Sandy's paw resting on his. They both looked up and smiled shyly at each other. Then Sandy scooted over and rested her head on Courage's shoulder. Courage felt as though he would literally explode with happiness. The two dogs continued to stare into the heavens as a shooting star streaked across the night sky.

  
  


After what seemed like forever, but was actually just an hour, Courage and Sandy walked back to the house hand in hand (or paw in paw, as the case may be.) They walked to the basement door in the dark.

"My family's probably asleep inside," whispered Sandy to Courage. Courage agreed.

"Well, good night, Courage," said Sandy. Then she leaned in and hugged Courage.

"Good night, Sandy," answered Courage, hugging back.

With that, Sandy opened the door and walked inside.

  
  


Courage staggered up the stairs, down the hall, and into the attic. He felt as if all the stress he ever had was suddenly erased from him. He was actually losing his balance at times. He turned on the attic light and went to the window. He leaned his elbows on the sill and stared up into the night sky. He was thinking about his recent conversation with Sandy. He had never met such a dog like Sandy in his entire life. And he knew he never would find another dog like her anywhere. He began to sigh...

  
  


Suddenly he stopped in mid-sigh. He changed from lovestruck to shocked in an instant. Once again, in the reflection of the window, Courage saw his computer. It was turned off, but there was something attached to the screen! Courage whirled around and saw a yellow post-it note stuck to the screen. Courage took it off the monitor and read what was written on it:

  
  


"THE MOMENT THE CLOCK STRIKES 12, THE DAY WILL ARRIVE. AND ALL HECK WILL BREAK LOOSE. NOT EVEN MY NIGHTMARES COULD PREDICT WHAT WILL HAPPEN NEXT, COURAGE."

  
  


Courage crumpled up the note. He knew who had written the note. He now knew who had written all those warnings on his computer. Without a word, he turned and race out of the attic, praying to himself that things wouldn't be getting too scary.

  
  


Next...Chapter 9: THINGS GET SCARY!

(Finally! Enough with this mushy stuff and on to the freakiness!)

  
  



	9. Things Get Scary

Chapter 9: Things Get Scary

  
  


Courage arrived at the top of the stairs. He stopped. Downstairs, a pale white light was dimly illuminating the entire living room. Slowly, Courage descended, inch by inch. Halfway down the stairs, Courage peered between the wooden posts supporting the handrail. He gasped when he saw who was down there.

  
  


Sitting in Eustace's chair was Kevin. The laptop was placed on his lap and was the source of the strange light. Kevin looked at the screen with a puzzled look on his face. He didn't move a muscle. Courage continued down to the foot of the stairs and traveled over to where Kevin was sitting. Kevin's eyes looked away from the screen and observed Courage standing in front of his feet. Courage had a slightly annoyed expression on his face, and his arms were crossed. Kevin had a very good idea of what Courage was about to say.

  
  


"You're the one who's been sending me the letters on my computer," said Courage.

  
  


Without a word, Kevin turned his laptop around so Courage could see the screen. In the center of the screen was the black instant-messenger box, but inside the box, there was only one line of text: Couragebravedog is off-line.

  
  


"Why didn't you tell me?" inquired Courage.

  
  


"To tell you the honest truth, Courage,...I didn't know it was you, at first. When my dreams first began, I didn't know what to do. I thought it was nothing more than a strange dream, but then it kept repeating itself night after night. I tried to tell my family, but everyone was busy planning for the trip, including myself, so only Sandy fully comprehended what I was saying. Then, in one of my dreams, I was running through a town and passed a sign that said "Nowhere" on it. I tried researching it on the Net, but came up with practically nothing. Then, three days ago, I saw an e-mail address in my dream, so I sent a warning to that person, warning him that in three days, terrible things would be happening in the town of Nowhere."

  
  


Courage tried to remain calm as he said, "That 'person' was me."

  
  


"Yes," said Kevin. "Of course, I didn't realize that until I saw your computer upstairs. When you went back down, I snuck back into the room, turned on your computer and discovered that you were the one I sent the warnings to. See, it was by sheer luck that our trip went right through Nowhere." Kevin stopped to think for a moment. "Or...maybe it wasn't luck. Maybe my dreams led me and my family here. Or maybe it was fate. I don't know. All I know is that I'm finally here, and I'm with someone who understands what I'm talking about, besides Sandy."

  
  


Courage nodded at the acknowledgment. Then he looked up at Kevin. "How were you able to turn my computer off each time you sent me a warning?"

Kevin smiled. "I...uh...sent a little virus into your computer every time. Don't worry, it didn't mess it up or anything. It just activates an automatic shutdown. I know so much about computers, it's almost scary." 

  
  


The two of them were silent for a moment. Then, Courage spoke up again. "One more thing. You told me about your dreams, the ones about Nowhere's past. But you never mentioned how you knew something bad was going to happen tomorrow. How did you know about that?"

  
  


Kevin gulped. He had hoped Courage wouldn't ask about that. Until now, only Sandy knew about the answer to that question. But Courage had asked...and Kevin would have to answer.

Kevin reached into his pocket and put on his sunglasses. Taking a deep breath, Kevin said:

"After I wake up from my first dreams, the ones I've already told you about, and I go back to sleep, I have another nightmare. A nightmare that I can hardly put into words. It starts with me standing in a room. Suddenly, the ground starts shaking. The ceiling above my head suddenly flies away and...this...this huge tornado-thing sucks me in. I start seeing horrible images. Images of shadowy things chasing after people, flying through the air, attacking people..."

Kevin's hands began shaking, which caused the laptop to quiver as well. "I'm traveling through a dark tunnel. At the end is this huge faceless ghost. It starts to grab at me...and then I get that falling feeling, you know? And then I wake up."

  
  


As Kevin described his nightmare, his voice transformed into a whisper. When he finished, Courage could see a tear running down Kevin's cheek from behind his shades. Suddenly, Kevin took off his sunglasses, which revealed red, wet eyes, and folded his computer up. This caused the room to be enveloped in darkness, save for the moonlight coming into the window.

Kevin felt Courage's paw pat him on the knee. Kevin leaned over and patted Courage back, on the head. "Thanks," said Courage.

"Well," said Kevin. "I guess we'll have to do figure out something to do in the next...oh no."

Kevin had turned on his wristwatch light to read the time, and he wasn't happy with what he saw.

"W-what?" shook Courage.

"It's eleven-thirty!" replied Kevin.

Courage howled. In thirty minutes, it would be midnight, and the Day would arrive. The nightmares would begin.

"I guess we can forget about watching TV," said Kevin.

  
  


For the next twenty-nine minutes, Courage and Kevin paced around the house. They ate a few snacks, even though no one felt like eating. They considered whether they should wake everyone up and explain, but Kevin didn't want to scare everyone into thinking him and Courage were crazy. They looked out the window from time to time, noticing that some thunderclouds were advancing in their direction. To pass the time, Courage struck up a conversation about Kevin's family. They talked about Kevin's parents, Carl and Diane, as well as Katie and Mr. Furry. Courage pointed out the analogy between Katie and Mr. Furry to Kevin and Sandy. Kevin thought that was rather smart of Courage to come up with a comparison like that. The duo was actually laughing for a while, until Kevin looked at his watch and observed the time. "11:56 PM". 

Courage and Kevin decided to count down the remaining minutes, second by second. With every passing second their eyes got wider, their hearts beat faster, and their breath began quickening. At ten seconds remaining they were shouting out the seconds, not caring if they woke anyone up. At five seconds remaining, Kevin and Courage were on their feet.

"FOUR!...THREE!...TWO!...ONE!..."

  
  


Kevin's watched displayed 12:00:01 AM. A new day. THE DAY! Courage and Kevin held their breath, waiting for something to happen...but nothing did.

They waited an entire minute. Nothing.

"M-maybe nothing will happen," whispered Kevin.

Courage whacked his paw against his forehead. He couldn't believe what he'd just heard! Didn't Kevin know that 99% of the time anyone ever says "Nothing's going to happen," or something like that, something bad always happens IMMEDIATELY AFTERWARDS?!?!?

  
  


Courage thought about explaining this "law" to Kevin...but he never got the chance.

  
  


It began when all the light from outside disappeared, an indication that the storm clouds had covered the entire sky. Then, Courage and Kevin felt something beneath their feet. The floor was beginning to vibrate...then shiver...then shake like an earthquake. Kevin gasped! 

Standing in a room! The ground beginning to shake!...

He grabbed Courage by the shoulders and stared into his eyes. "It's happening! My nightmare is coming true!! IT'S HAPPENING!!!"

Courage screamed, as items began falling of the shelves...

  
  


******

  
  


Upstairs, Muriel awoke to discover that her bed was vibrating. "That's odd," she told herself. "I never knew the bed could do that." Then she heard a deep, loud rumbling sound. The lamp fell of the table beside the bed.

"Eustace wake up, ya old man! We're having an earthquake!" Muriel shook her husband awake.

"Zzz...eh..wha?" mumble Eustace before falling out of the bed.

"I didn't even know earthquakes could happen in Kansas!" yelled Muriel over the rumbling.

A giant crack appeared in the wall. Pictures began falling and shattering on the ground. The wind suddenly began howling outside.

"I left me paper in the bathroom!" bellowed Eustace, and dashed into the bathroom.

"Will you forget the paper?" pleaded Muriel. "Where's Courage?"

At that moment the window shattered. The shards of glass collapsed into the room. A huge gust of wind swept a screaming Muriel off her feet. Boards in the ceiling began flying off, hinting that something huge was hovering above the house!

Newspaper pages flew out of the bathroom door and out the window. Eustace ran out of the bathroom.

"Muriel! Me paper's gone! Wha-?"

There was an enormous "CRACK!" as the entire wall gave way, sending Muriel and Eustace flying out of the house, screaming all the way...

  
  


******

  
  
  
  


In the basement, Carl awoke to hear the sound of a train far off in the distance. Carl rolled over, trying to let the train's rumbling lure him back to sleep. Then he sat straight up in bed. He didn't remember there being a train track anywhere near the house! And why was it getting louder?

"Honey?" asked Carl to his wife, who was sleeping next to him. "Diane, wake up!"

Diane awoke to hear the sound of a loud rumbling sound, but more importantly, she awoke to witness the entire room shaking! "Carl?!" inquired Diane.

The single lightbulb in the center of the ceiling flickered on. It revealed dirt flying off the walls in clouds. The drawers that held all the Hendersons' luggage fell onto its side. On the far side of the room Katie stood clutching Mr. Furry and Sandy.

"Katie!" yelled her parents.

"Mommy! Daddy!" shouted Katie.

Carl and Diane got out of bed and ran toward her. A gigantic sucking sound, like an enormous vacuum cleaner, drowned out all other noises. Carl grabbed Katie in an attempt to lead her into a corner of the room. "WHERE'S KEVIN?!!" screamed Diane at the top of her lungs.

What happened next was like something out of the film 'Twister'. You see, Katie and Sandy happened to be standing in front of a flight of stairs that led out into the backyard. A big, wooden cellar door was all that kept the Hendersons from being sucked out of the room. Well, the outside wind became too much for the hinges of he door to stay screwed into the wood. When that happened, the entire cellar door disintegrated into splinters. Everything that wasn't tied down (sleeping bags, papers, dust, clothes) were sucked out of the basement and into the backyard...as well as Carl, Diane, Katie, Sandy, and Mr. Furry.

  
  


******

  
  


Courage and Kevin ran into the kitchen. It was chaos in there. Pots and pans clattered onto the linoleum. Drawers flew open, spilling their contents. Glass splintered all over the place. Outside the window, sand was flying all over the place and a large shadow blanketed the yard. Lightning flashed every so often.

"What do we do??!! What do we do??!!" shouted Courage over the wind.

"I don't know!" yelled back Kevin.

Suddenly an incredibly loud noise, like exploding wood, was heard above their heads. Kevin thought the house was caving in. He dashed off to the side and jumped onto the counter in front of some cupboards. Courage, on the other hand, fell onto his back and looked up in shock. The entire top half of the house was gone! It had tipped over onto its side, revealing a sight so horrific, that it was unlike anything he had ever seen before!

  
  


Whirling around Courage's head was an enormous sand tornado! Just like in Kevin's dream! It was big enough to swallow the entire house! But, unlike a tornado, it wasn't connected to the sky! Instead, it curved over back into a giant hole in the ground, about 100 feet away! (For those of who saw the giant sand tornado in the movie "Mission to Mars", it's basically the same thing.)

  
  


With the wind whipping his ears around, Courage slowly got to his feet. Pieces of the house were flying everywhere! He stared up into the hole in the middle of the vortex. It almost looked as though it were searching for him. Courage screamed again and dove into the cupboard, closing the door behind him. (The same cupboard under the sink that Courage was crying in earlier.)

  
  


Courage grabbed onto the sink pipe for dear life. Outside, the wind was howling up a storm. Lightning and thunder was seen and heard every so often. Courage whined to himself, hoping that he would get through this alive.

  
  


A minute later, the winds died down surprisingly quickly. The sand tornado must've whipped back into the hole. Courage took a while to peek out the door of the cupboard. What he saw unhinged his jaw as he opened the door further.

The entire property looked like a bomb site. Shrapnel and debris were everywhere! The first floor of the house was basically intact, but the second story/attic had tipped over behind the house at a 90 degree angle, and it was a mess. Amazingly, the windmill was still standing, blades and all! Courage wondered if anyone made it out...

  
  


That's when the realization hit him. Muriel and Eustace where in the upstairs bedroom! Courage ran to the bedroom, looked in through a hole in the wall, and found the entire place deserted. Then, Courage ran down the basement stairs to find that it was deserted too. The Hendersons, all of them, were gone. Carl and Diane and Katie and Kevin.....and Sandy.

  
  


Courage walked slowly into the kitchen and dropped to his knees. They were gone, sucked into the sand vortex. Eustace, Muriel, the Hendersons, all gone! He couldn't believe it, but he fought the over-cliched urge the scream "NO" at the top of his lungs. Tears began welling up in his eyes again. He closed his eyes, trying to keep himself together. But it no use. He took a couple deep breaths and, tilting his head upwards, screamed the two-letter word at the top of his lungs.

  
  


He hadn't even gotten past the "N" in "No" when a lightning bolt flashed across the sky. Instantly, a blast of thunder crashed. Then, a torrent of rain fell as Courage collapsed forward onto his stomach. The sound of rain mixed in with the sounds of Courage's sobs.

  
  


(It's official. THIS is the lowest point in Courage's life. But not for long!)

Next... Chapter 10 - Discovering the Courage Within


	10. Discovering the Courage Within

Chapter 10: Discovering the Courage Within

  
  


The torrents of rain pelted the ground like marbles, but Courage didn't take any notice. He was lying in the middle of the kitchen, or what was left of it, with the rain hammering into his back. Sadness filled his entire body the way tears filled his eyes. He couldn't believe that Eustace and Muriel were gone. Taken by that...thing. The Hendersons were also gone. And Sandy...Courage couldn't bear the thought of leaving her so soon. He was alone. All alone.

  
  


Courage felt utterly defeated. He felt like he could just crawl into a hole and die. (Hi, Chris!)

  
  


Suddenly, Courage heard a faint sound through the rain! It sounded like someone knocking on a piece of wood. Courage slowly sat up, his vision blurry. Whether it was from the rain or his tears, he didn't know. Courage wiped his eyes and tried to determine where the sound was coming from. The frantic knocks appeared to be coming from a cupboard that was blocked by a two-by-four. Courage got to his feet, and limped over to the piece of wood. Courage struggled to move the board, and it eventually gave way.

  
  


Out popped Kevin. He had dashed into the cupboard when the second story gave way. He was leaning against the cupboard doors at that moment, so he collapsed onto the counter and then rolled into a puddle on the floor. He appeared stunned, but was unharmed.

Courage was relieved. At least someone was left behind with him. "Kevin!" shouted Courage.

"Courage! You're all right!" answered Kevin, as the dog threw his arms around him. "I thought I would be all alone."

Courage did not want to say it, but it slipped out anyway. "We are."

  
  


Kevin stopped hugging him and looked Courage in the eye. The rain was beginning to lighten. "Wh..what?"

"We're alone," said Courage, sadly. "Everyone else was...sucked in by that sand thing."

  
  


Kevin was shocked. He slowly stood up, the rain matting his hair. He began shaking his head and walking around the kitchen, tripping over debris. A bolt of lightning revealed a look of complete sorrow on Kevin's face; a look he wouldn't dare reveal in public. He managed to walk back to the counter, rest his elbows on it, and place his forehead in his hands. He tried to come up with an idea, any idea at all, but none came to mind. Courage overheard Kevin mumbling about losing Sandy.

It was at this point that Courage figured out that, along with their separate families, both he and Kevin were weeping over Sandy. It was as if Sandy was a link between Kevin's family and Courage's family. Of course, Kevin and Courage had slightly different feelings for Sandy, but both of them felt a great deal of devotion toward her.

As soon as this realization passed, something else started happening to Courage. His depression was beginning to dissipate, and a new, stronger feeling was beginning to take its place...

  
  


Finally, Kevin stood up straight. The rain was coming down in a drizzle now. He started to walk toward the door, talking to himself. "We...we need to get help. There's probably a police station or hospital or...or something around here. We need to call some investigators out here...or the army, or navy, or something. ANYONE! We need to get help! We-..."

  
  


"No," said a voice behind him.

  
  


Kevin froze. He turned around to where Courage was standing, his back towards Kevin. "What did you say?" asked Kevin with amazement.

  
  


There was no rain falling now. One final drop of rain fell from the clouds and landed directly on Courage's head. It dripped down his forehead between his dark, stern eyes, around one side of his nose, and rested between his lips. Courage's tongue lapped the drop into his mouth and gritted his teeth in deep determination. His paws were clenched into fists. All the sadness in Courage's body was replaced with a red-hot feeling of anger. With his eyes looking far off into the distance, Courage answered Kevin's question.

  
  


"All my life I've wanted to be loved, cared for, and treated with respect. My owners have done that and much more for me. Only recently have I discovered that there are different ways to care for others, even those of my own species. And now...now someone has taken it all away from me. I will not stand for this. I will not rest until whoever is responsible for doing this to me is done away with. Completely...and permanently."

  
  


Kevin couldn't believe what he was hearing. Was this the same dog that ran off screaming from Eustace's mask? Kevin scratched his head with astonishment.

  
  


Courage turned around and faced Kevin. "So we are going...to go after that thing...and we...are going to get our families back." 

When Courage finished, he was just as surprised as Kevin. He had never been so outspoken before about something like this in his life.

Kevin knew that too, because he immediately blurted out, "Who are you and what have you done with the real Courage?" before cracking a smile.

Courage began chuckling softly. The wave of anger had passed.

  
  


******

  
  


Courage and Kevin walked out to the giant hole. The hole was about sixty feet across and deep enough so that the bottom was not visible. They realized that they needed some supplies, so Courage and Kevin spent the next hour gathering some items scattered around the house. They were fortunate enough to discover a flashlight and a clothesline among the debris. The clothesline could be used to climb down the hole. 

Courage went to explore the recently-moved upper story of the house. He checked the attic to search for more equipment and came across his computer. To Courage's dismay, the electrical cables had been cut and the computer was not operational. Courage didn't find any useful items anywhere else, so he traveled back to the kitchen.

Kevin was eating an apple, and offered Courage some food. "I have a feeling your gonna need it," said Kevin with his mouth full. Eagerly, Courage gobbled down the food he was offered. When he was finished, Kevin showed Courage his sunglasses. "I found them near the henhouse. Guess they won't be of much use down below." With that, Kevin placed the sunglasses onto the counter.

  
  


Then, Kevin grabbed the flashlight and the clothesline and looked at Courage.

"Let's go," said Kevin. Courage nodded. "Right."

  
  


When they arrived at the hole for the second time, Kevin shined the flashlight down into the hole. They could see the bottom of the hole about 100 feet down. Suddenly, they were faced with a problem. What were they going to tie the clothesline to, in order to climb down into the hole? Courage looked around and caught sight of the water pump about ten feet from the outer lip of the hole. Somehow, it was not uprooted from the ground by the sand vortex. 

Courage remembered when he witnessed Kevin using the pump to shower Sandy on that first day. He pushed the pleasant thought out of his mind, reminding himself that there more important things to be thinking about. "Over there," said Courage, pointing to the pump.

  
  


In a flash, Kevin tied the clothesline securely around the water pump. Courage tossed the clothesline into the hole. Fortunately, the line was able to touch the cave floor. Kevin walked up and announced that he was going first. Courage agreed and asked what time it was.

Kevin looked at his watch. It read 1:15 A.M.

"No sleep for us, I guess," said Courage.

Kevin just rolled his eyes. The two friends began to descend into the vertical tunnel to find their families.

  
  


(Whew. This story is hard work. I think I'll take a little break for now. I'll get back on it when I have time.)

  
  


Next chapter... Chapter 11: Bankruptcy.......just kidding...... "The Tunnel of Nowhere"

  
  
  
  
  
  



	11. The Tunnel to Nowhere

Chapter 11: The Tunnel to Nowhere

  
  


As Kevin inched slowly down the clothesline, he looked up. Five feet above him was Courage, who was also inching his way down into the hole. Neither of them had any safety gear to keep them from slipping, so they had to use their own strength to stay on the rope. (I'm going to call it a rope in order to be more convenient.) Beyond Courage, Kevin could see the night sky. The storm clouds were more or less gone, except for a few lingering cumulus clouds, and the stars were lighting up the sky once more. 

  
  


About fifteen feet down, Kevin's foot touched something sticking out of the wall of the pit. It was a block of rotting wood that protruded several inches out of the dirt. It was about three feet high by three feet wide and had a line of brass running around the bottom of it. As Kevin began to climb down past it, he also noticed an elaborate brass handle right in the middle of the woodwork. 

Kevin stopped. He realized what this thing really was. His heart froze, and he clung to the rope for dear life.

  
  


Courage bumped into him from above and rested his back paws on the top of the wood. "What's wrong?" he asked.

Kevin looked up at him with fear in his eyes. "Don't you see what this is? This is one end of a coffin!"

  
  


Courage gasped. His back paws flew off of the coffin. His eyes suddenly darted left and right. On both sides of the first coffin, a few feet in each direction, Courage saw another coffin! Only a single corner of each coffin could be seen (because the coffins were placed side by side and the hole is circular.)

  
  


When Kevin and Courage finally realized that nothing was going to come out of the coffins, they resumed climbing down the pit, albeit shaken up.

"I thought," said Kevin. "I thought they moved the cemetery."

"They did," answered Courage. "They just moved the tombstones. Not the coffins."

For some reason, the movie "Poltergeist" entered Kevin's mind. He shook the thought away and kept climbing downward with Courage a dog's length above him.

  
  


Eventually, the two reached the bottom. The moonlight wasn't able to penetrate this far into the hole, so it was pitch black down there. Kevin switched on the flashlight and checked to make sure Courage was with him. Then Kevin searched around the bottom of where they were with the flashlight until he saw it. "Whoa," said Kevin. Courage shivered with nervousness.

  
  


The flashlight revealed the stone entrance to an arched tunnel. The tunnel was about fifteen feet high and wide enough for a subway train to pass through. Along the walls grew bioluminescent moss which created an eerie glow to the tunnel.

  
  


"I guess we go this way," said Kevin sarcastically. Kevin began to enter the tunnel when Courage tugged on his pant leg.

"We're heading back towards town. This tunnel goes under the town of Nowhere!"

Courage's voice echoed off the walls. Kevin shined the light on Courage. "Are you sure?"

Courage shielded his eyes from the light. "We're heading in that direction. I know that much."

Kevin shined the light into his own face. The shadows created a menacing look on his surprised face. He and Courage knew that this was not a coincidence. Without another word, Kevin shined the light down the tunnel. It seemed to stretch on for miles. Taking a deep breath, Kevin started walking. Courage tagged along next to him.

  
  


After about an hour, Kevin and Courage sat on the floor to rest. Kevin turned off the flashlight, and the two of them were bathed in a faint greenish glow.

Kevin sighed. They were silent except for their breathing. After a while, Courage broke the silence. 

"Where does your family live?"

"Hmm?" said Kevin. "Oh, um, near Columbus. Ohio."

"You were going to visit some relatives, right?"

"Yeah, Uncle Mike and Aunt Vivian. Vivian is my dad's sister. They just moved from Orlando, Florida to San Francisco because of Mike's new job. My family was going to help them move into the house. I think we were supposed to arrive at their house today."

"Oh," sighed Courage. "So...what are you going to tell them if you get there?"

"Well, WHEN we get there, we'll...uh...tell them....something, like 'we stayed at this lovely old farmhouse on the way over and just didn't feel like leaving' or something like that."

Courage nodded. After a minute, Kevin smiled. "And if they ask if anything interesting happened on the way over, we'll ironically say, 'Oh, not much.'" Kevin and Courage laughed at that remark. They continued sitting on the tunnel floor. Their feet felt like they had walked up an entire mountain. And they still had a ways to go.

  
  


"Why now?" said Courage to himself.

"What?" asked Kevin.

Courage looked at Kevin. "Why now? Why is all this happening today, of all days?"

"Well..." began Kevin. "I remember this from the museum: the town of Nowhere was founded in 1802, right?" Courage nodded. "And Joseph Williams killed Reginald Baggs in 1852, right?" Courage nodded again. "Don't you see? Today not only marks the 200th anniversary of the founding of Nowhere, but also the 150th anniversary of Reginald's death!"

Courage gasped in astonishment. He couldn't believe that Kevin could figure out a fact like that!

"The anniversaries are the perfect reasons why all this is happening! They're the only reasons that I can think of."

  
  


Courage took in all of this new information, but the worst was yet to come. 

"Kevin?" asked Courage. "Don't you feel...unlucky that your family had to be dragged into all of this? I mean, you're just an innocent family that's been sucked into this mess for no reason at all, right?"

Kevin froze. He was trying to figure out how to tell Courage exactly what he wanted to say. When several minutes went by, Courage began to feel nervous again. It was obvious that Kevin was about to say something very important, but was trying to find the words to say so. Finally, Kevin looked at Courage with a serious expression on his face.

  
  
  
  


"Courage, I hope that what I'm about to say doesn't harm our friendship in any way."

Courage gulped. This was more serious than he thought. Courage took a deep breath and said, "Go on."

"You see," Kevin continued. "It's not entirely true that my family is involved in this mess for no reason. In fact, it was almost as if we were fated to come here. At least, in my opinion. You see, Courage, the truth is..."

Kevin leaned in close to Courage. He could see his reflection in Courage's widened eyes. Kevin opened his mouth and uttered the words that sent chills down Courage's spine:

"...I am related to Joseph Williams."

  
  


Courage couldn't believe his ears. This teen, Kevin, was related to the man who killed Eustace's grandfather 150 years ago!

  
  


Courage frowned. This didn't make any sense. "How can that be?" he asked. "Your last name is 'Henderson'!"

"I know. My father's name is Henderson. But my mother's maiden name is 'Williams'! Her great-grandfather helped Reginald Baggs found the town of Nowhere and eventually murder him."

  
  


Courage was so overwhelmed by all of this that he collapsed onto his rear. Frankly, Courage didn't know what to think.

  
  


"It's okay if this lessens your appreciation of me," mumbled Kevin as he bowed his head. "I can understand."

"No, no, it's okay," answered Courage, who placed a paw on Kevin's shoulder. "You're an okay guy. I mean, that's all in the past, right?"

"Yeah. Only now, the past has caught up to us."

Courage smiled weakly. "It's just that...you should've told me about this earlier,"

Kevin shrugged. "I didn't really think that it was the right time. Too soon. Besides, you had a lot on your mind." Kevin winked.

Courage blushed slightly. He knew exactly who Kevin was referring to.

  
  


Kevin got to his feet and stretched. "I guess we'd better keep going."

"Right behind you," answered Courage. Together, Kevin and Courage resumed their trek down the tunnel.

  
  


For thirty minutes, the boy and the dog walked down the tunnel. They didn't say much, and they kept close together the entire way. Courage was, at first, slightly annoyed with Kevin knowing about Courage's crush on Sandy. However, almost as if he knew what Courage was thinking, Kevin suddenly blurted out, "Sandy thinks you're cute."

That stopped Courage in his tracks. He looked up at Kevin with amazement. "R-really?"

"Yeah! She told me you're really handsome."

Courage beamed with delight.

"Of course," continued Kevin, "Don't tell her I said that, okay?"

"Sure!" agreed Courage, who suddenly felt like he could walk clear across the Earth if he wanted to.

  
  


Finally, ten minutes later, Kevin turned off the flashlight. "Look! Up ahead!"

Courage looked down the tunnel. Far away, there appeared an dull orange light. "C'mon!" cried Kevin. "We must be near the end!" He then broke into a run. Courage followed from behind.

As the light became closer, Courage and Kevin noticed some pipes that were attached to the ceiling and walls.

"We must be getting near the town!" shouted Kevin to Courage as they ran. The end of the tunnel became nearer and nearer. Courage ran slightly faster than Kevin, so he reached the end first. What he saw made him screech to a stop. Courage's jaw dropped, his eyes practically popped right out of his head. Kevin came running up from behind and stopped directly behind Courage. Kevin kneeled down to where Courage was standing.

  
  


"Oh my gosh," said Kevin, wearing an expression that was similar to Courage's. "This is the most incredible thing I've ever seen."

  
  


(What is it that could possibly leave our heroes so completely stunned? Tune in soon for the next thrilling chapter...Chapter 12: The Labyrinth of Discovery!)

  
  
  
  
  
  



	12. The Labyrinth of Discovery

Chapter 12: The Labyrinth of Discovery

  
  


Courage and Kevin found themselves standing at the top of a flight of stairs. Before them lay an enormous cavern. The walls and ceiling were made out of solid rock, while the floor was composed of dirt and gravel. The cavern was about a football field wide and at least two football fields long. The ceiling towered about fifty feet overhead. What caught their attention, however, was what was contained in this underground room. Taking up almost all available floor space was an elaborate labyrinth (tongue-twister!), with clay walls that were ten feet high! In the middle of this giant maze was a large pillar of stone connecting the ceiling to the floor. A spiral staircase swirled its way up around the pillar until it vanished into the ceiling. Courage had a hunch that the staircase led to a building somewhere in Nowhere. He thought this because, all along the ceiling, a vast network of pipes and cables were seen branching out like a spiderweb. The entire town of Nowhere was standing right above Courage's head! The room was silent, except for the crackling sounds of torches that were placed wherever there was a wall. This explained where the orange light was coming from. 

  
  


Kevin and Courage stood in awe, unable to speak. Finally, Kevin mumbled, "What kind of power could do something like this?"

Someone very powerful, thought Courage. The only question was, who?

"Have you ever seen anything like this?" whispered Courage to Kevin.

"I've been to the caverns at Carlsbad, Courage, but they didn't have a giant rat maze in the middle of it."

"What do we do, Kevin?"

"...We'll have to go through it."

  
  


Courage whined. He wished there was another way. From their vantage point at the top of the stairs, they could see into the interior of the labyrinth. It looked dark and foreboding, even with the torches. From the floor of the cavern, the walls would be too high to look over.

Hearing Courage whining, Kevin turned to him. "Look, Courage. It's obvious someone put all this here for us to get through. We're not going to just turn back now. Not with our families at stake. Besides, it could be worse."

Courage ducked, half expecting something worse to immediately happen, but, surprisingly, nothing did! So, Courage took a deep breath and said, "Let's go." He walked carefully down the steps, followed by Kevin.

  
  


When they arrived at the cavern's floor, the single entrance to the labyrinth was visible. It was about six feet wide and had no warnings or diagrams or anything on it.

As they approached the entrance, Kevin spontaneously said, "You know, this kinda reminds me of a movie I once saw."

"Really?" asked Courage, hoping it would help them get through the maze.

"Yeah. It starred David Bowie, and..."

"Never mind, never mind. I don't wanna know," said Courage, his hopes dashed.

(The movie's name is, of course, "Labyrinth".)

  
  


They stopped at the entrance. "How are we going to get through this?" asked Courage.

"Don't worry," said Kevin. "This shouldn't be too hard. Even a blind man could get through this!"

Courage looked at Kevin as though he'd lost his mind. "What??"

"It's true! I read it in a puzzle book once. It said that a blind man can get through any maze if he follows a simple rule: if he just keeps his right hand on the right wall or his left hand on the left wall, he will eventually make it out of the maze!" (This trick really does work!)

  
  


Courage sighed. He didn't have any ideas, so he observed as Kevin put his right hand against the wall and ran into the labyrinth. Courage rushed off after him.

Of course, the book never mentioned how long it would take before you actually got out of the maze. Courage and Kevin arrived at so many dead ends, that Courage began to wonder if they would ever see the end of the maze at all. He was just about to tell Kevin this, when suddenly, Kevin and Courage arrived at a clearing. In the middle of the clearing stood the stone pillar. It looked so much bigger up close, almost as big as the trunk of a redwood tree. The spiral staircase was just wide enough for Courage and Kevin to walk up without worrying about falling off the edge. Kevin stared up at the pillar as his heart sank. How was he going to be able to get to the top with his "condition"?

  
  


"Hey, Kevin! Are you coming?" asked Courage, who was on the first step of the staircase. 

"Uh, yeah." Kevin slowly approached the stairs and followed Courage.

  
  


Halfway up the stairs, Courage looked out to see the labyrinth spread out across the cavern. He and Kevin were about thirty feet above the ground, and yet Courage didn't feel queasy at all. Heights were always something that Courage never seemed to be too scared of.

Courage looked back to see that Kevin wasn't behind him. He walked down a few steps and discovered Kevin plastered against the side of the column.

"Are you OK?" asked Courage.

"Oh yeah. It's just that I, uh, have a....slight fear of...uh...heights. That's all."

  
  


Courage was astounded by the sudden irony. Courage the cowardly dog was less afraid of something than Kevin! He had always seen Kevin as a fearless, aggressive kid, but now, seeing him cowering against the wall was almost as ridiculous as everything that had occurred so far that night.

Courage grabbed Kevin's hand. "C'mon. It's okay." Slowly, step by step, Kevin and Courage inched their way up the steps until they reached the ceiling. The steps kept going up past the ceiling, so Kevin and Courage continued climbing.

  
  


It wasn't long before the boy and the dog reached the end of the staircase. It led to a small, bare room only three feet high! A large metal panel was situated right above their heads. It didn't take long for them to figure out that the ceiling of the room must also be part of the floor of a building in Nowhere. Without a word, Kevin pushed up against the panel until it came loose. Kevin then pushed the panel aside along the building's floor. They had discovered a secret passage into...

Kevin recognized the building they were now in and gasped. Courage had also poked his head up from the trapdoor. He was amazed at where they were.

  
  
  
  


They were back at the museum!

  
  


The passage had brought them up to a spot directly behind the pedestal that contained the silver dollar. Kevin and Courage stood up inside the museum. The only light was coming from the streetlights outside. But there was something else going on outside as well. Courage and Kevin took a step toward the front door to get a better look and stopped, horrified at what they saw.

  
  


Through the glass entrance doors of the museum, Courage the cowardly dog and Kevin the terrified teen witnessed a riot going on outside. People in their night clothes were running everywhere and being attacked! But these people were not being attacked by other people. They were being attacked by monsters! Large humanoid bipeds with black fur and ape-like hands that grabbed at people and tossed them aside. Four-legged scaly creatures with sharp fangs biting and clawing at anyone in sight. Winged bats as large as a car dived out of the sky to chase after their prey. It was impossible to not hear the sounds of car alarms going off and glass shattering everywhere. And screaming. Lots of screaming.

Courage and Kevin tried their best to hide on the floor behind the coin's pedestal. Courage sat in Kevin's lap, clutching at his shirt. Kevin's arms wrapped around Courage and held on tight. 

  
  


Kevin began mumbling. "Shadowy things chasing after people. Flying through the air. Attacking people. Just like in my nightmare!" Courage began shivering along with Kevin. The mayhem outside seemed to be getting closer.

As they sat there, shaking and crying, Kevin looked up at the wall. Once again, he stared into the eyes of the portraits of Reginald Baggs and Joseph Williams.

"Look, Courage. Look at the picture of Joseph." Courage turned around and his watery eyes glanced up at the portrait.

"My mother's great-grandfather. Last time I was here, I saw these portraits. The family resemblance of Reginald to Eustace was undeniable, but Joseph looks so much like my mother. The shape of the face. The eyes. The neck. I knew right away that they were related."

This is all very touching, thought Courage, but any minute now those creatures could smash open the door and discover them.

Kevin continued. "It's such a shame that so much hatred was sparked between these two friends. If only there was some way to mend it after all this time."

  
  


At that moment, Courage suddenly felt cold all over. He felt as though all the warmth in him was sucked out. Courage had peculiar feeling that someone else was in the room with them! Kevin must have sensed it too because he suddenly called out, "Who's there?"

They looked around the room, but saw nobody. Kevin was about to say something when he suddenly shouted out, "Look!" and pointed to the silver dollar coin.

The coin was usually contained within a glass case on the pedestal. But somehow the coin was now without any protection. The glass case was discovered on the floor several feet away. Courage gulped. Kevin knew neither him nor Courage touched the case in any way. So how did it get there?

Kevin leaned closer to the dollar coin. He then turned back to the portraits. "The dollar is the key," Kevin whispered.

Courage gasped. It was the message that Kevin kept e-mailing to him! Courage looked at the silver dollar with growing intensity. Could this coin be the key to ending this 150 year old nightmare?

  
  


A loud thud at the door made Kevin and Courage jump. A dark....thing was trying to force its way into the museum. Without thinking, Courage jumped back into the trapdoor. Instantly, Kevin reached out, grabbed the coin, and put it into his pocket. He then jumped into the trapdoor, grabbed the panel, and slid it into place just as he heard the glass doors shatter into a million pieces.

  
  


(Whew. That was close.)

(Sit tight for the next equally thrilling chapter... "Chapter 13: Saving Sandy")

  
  
  
  



	13. Saving Sandy

Chapter 13: Saving Sandy

  
  


Courage and Kevin crawled through the small room and down the stairs. When the labyrinth was in view, they stopped and rested against the wall of the column.

"That...was close," gasped Kevin. Courage nodded.

Kevin then reached into his pocket. He pulled out the silver dollar. It had lost a lot of its luster after being exposed to the air for over a century. But you could still point out the grooves and indentations that proved that this coin was worth a dollar in its time.

"We need to get this coin to whoever is holding our families hostage," said Kevin. A thought suddenly made him sit up straight. "Maybe Reginald is helping us!"

Courage raised his eyebrows and made a questioning sound in his throat.

"C'mon, Courage. Remember how it got cold back there, all of a sudden? I've heard that sudden drops in temperature are related to ghostly encounters. I'm pretty sure the ghost of Reginald Baggs removed the coin's glass case from the pedestal. Maybe he's even on our side!"

This brought a little comfort to Courage, knowing that they now had another ally. Of course, seeing as how it was a ghost and all, the thought made Courage uneasy.

  
  


As Kevin put the coin back into his pocket, Courage heard something. "Ssshh," said Courage, as his acute hearing picked up a faraway sound. "Do you hear that, Kevin?"

"I don't hear anything," answered Kevin, which was an obvious lie. He could hear the crackling sounds of the torches and, more loudly, his own heartbeat.

Courage moved slowly down the steps, followed by Kevin. "Over there," said Courage and pointed to something on the far wall. On the opposite side of the room from which they came in, there was a tunnel that exited out of the cavern.

Courage paused. In order to get there, they would have to travel through the other half of the labyrinth. He didn't want him and Kevin to have to go through THAT again. There must be another way. Courage looked around. Below him, about three feet away, the top of a wall of the labyrinth was standing right within jumping distance. Before Kevin could ask the dog what he was doing, Courage took a flying leap off the staircase and landed squarely on top of the wall. 

  
  


Courage turned around. "C'mon, Kevin! Jump on!"

Kevin hesitated. He was about fifteen feet above the ground. His acrophobia (fear of heights) wasn't as strong from this height, but it was lingering nonetheless. Courage coaxed Kevin for several moments before Kevin took a big breath and leaped onto the wall rather awkwardly. He bruised his chest in the process, but was otherwise unharmed. From there, Courage and Kevin slowly walked along the wall towards the direction of the exit. If they were to fall off the wall, they would be hopelessly lost in the labyrinth. The top of the wall was only a couple feet wide, so they tried their best to balance on it. Kevin was having a bit of difficulty, since Courage was smaller and had a tail to help him balance. They eventually reached the end of the labyrinth and jumped down to the ground. The exit ahead looked exactly like the tunnel they had entered in except this one was at ground level. 

Now Kevin and Courage began to hear the sound more clearly. It was somebody's voice! "Help! Help me!" cried the pitiful voice. 

"Sandy!" said Kevin and Courage simultaneously. They looked at each other with determined expressions on their faces. Without another word, they ran out of the labyrinthine cavern and into the tunnel.

  
  


******

  
  


This was not the only large, underground chamber under the town of Nowhere. Far away from the maze cave was another cavern that was about half as big. The only light was coming from a small clump of glowing moss that sat against a wall and illuminated only a portion of the cave. It was rather chilly down in this cave, and the moss provided a little warmth in the area where it provided light. Huddled around this moss sat Carl, Diane, and Katie Henderson, as well as Eustace and Muriel. They were all miserable and frightened. They seemed to recall flying through a tornado of sand, and the next thing they knew, they were here. The Hendersons huddled together and wondered where Kevin and Sandy were. Muriel sat wondering where Courage was. Eustace wondered where the heck they were and, more importantly, where his paper went to.

"Stupid cave," muttered Eustace. "Stupid cold. Achoo!" sneezed Eustace.

"Where are we, mommy?" asked Katie, holding Mr. Furry tight.

"I don't know, baby," whispered Diane. "But we're going to get out of here. It's going to be all right." Katie's parents hugged her tight.

Muriel sighed sadly. Watching Carl and Diane protecting their daughter made her think about her grandson, Gormley. (Read YearOfTheCat's stories, "The Sneak", "Monstrous Mattress", and "My Girl" to find out more about Gormley.) Muriel wished Courage was with her. 

  
  


Suddenly, a deep male laugh exploded into the cavern! Everyone jumped, and huddled together fearfully, except for Eustace, who was just annoyed.

"Well, well, well," said the big voice, echoing from the darkness. "It's been a while, but it looks like I've finally found the relatives I've been searching for!"

"Who are you??!!" shouted Carl at the top of his lungs.

"Now, now, good man. All will be revealed shortly. I notice, however, that I have missed several of your family members. Don't worry about them. They're just fine...for now."

"What have you done with me Courage?" asked Muriel.

"Yeah! Where's our stupid dog?" shouted Eustace.

"No need to worry about him...Baggs." A chill ran down everyone's spine when the voice said "Baggs". The tone was one of inexplicable hatred. Even Eustace was beginning to get scared. "That dog and the boy...what was his name?...Kevin! Yes, they are on their way to discover you, but first, I have placed one of the dogs in a most...precarious position. If they can rescue her in the next...ten minutes, maybe they'll be smart enough to resume the search and not succumb to a 'flammable' fate."

"Her," mumbled Katie with tears in her eyes. "He said 'her'. He got Sandy."

"What kind of a monster are you?!!!" yelled Diane.

The voice was shocked. "Now is that any way to talk to an 'old relative', fellow Williams?" The voice laughed evilly, until all that could be heard were the fading echoes.

"Williams. Is that your maiden name? I think it's lovely," said Muriel shakily.

Diane smiled weakly at Muriel.

Carl turned to his wife. "'Old relative'? Don't tell me he's from YOUR side of the family."

Diane didn't know what to say. Everyone pretty much stopped talking at this point. Katie rested her head in her father's lap as Eustace got up and started pacing.

I knew this town seemed familiar, thought Diane to herself.

  
  


******

  
  


Kevin and Courage raced down the tunnel. As they ran, it suddenly began getting hotter. The two suddenly arrived at an intersection. A tunnel branched off perpendicularly to the left. It looked dark and eerie down there. But Sandy's screams were coming from directly ahead. A bright orange light could be seen off in the distance, just like before. Before they arrived, Courage and Kevin were amazed by the sudden heat. They began sweating and panting, and they could hear a sound like boiling water from up ahead. When they reached the end of the tunnel, they stopped and gazed at the scene before them.

  
  


They were in another large cavern. This time, about 100 feet below, was a sea of molten lava (or magma, as the case may be.) The ceiling was made of a shimmering, acidic mineral. Poking up from the magma was a tall, rocky island that was connected to where Courage and Kevin were standing by the stereotypical "rickety wooden bridge." In the middle of the tiny island stood a wooden post and tied up to this post with a rope was Sandy.

  
  


"Sandy!" yelled Courage and Kevin.

"Courage! Kevin! Get me out of here!" shouted Sandy over the roar of the bubbling magma.

"Don't worry, Sandy!" said Courage.

"Yeah! We'll save you!" yelled Kevin.

They approached the bridge and carefully started across it. The ropes creaked and strained from the sudden weight.

"Oh, this is not good," said Courage, as he stared down towards the magma.

"How do you think I feel?" asked Kevin, who was holding onto the ropes for dear life. "Just don't look down, Courage."

Courage obeyed Kevin's command until the two of them arrived at the halfway point of the bridge. Courage stepped on a rotten piece of wood and the board broke underneath him. Courage's paw grabbed onto the rope as Kevin grabbed the back of Courage's neck. Courage watched the wood fall into the lava below.

"Kevin!! I'm looking down!!" whined Courage.

"I told you not to look down!" answered Kevin.

"Um, boys?! I'd like to get out of here if you don't mind!!" yelled Sandy.

"I think she's getting annoyed," said Courage.

"Gee, you think?!" hollered Kevin. "Look, you go on ahead and untie her. I'll stay here to make sure you both get back."

Courage didn't like this idea, but he didn't want to argue. He slowly regained his composure and took a step forward towards Sandy.

  
  


"The things you do for love," muttered Kevin from behind.

Courage turned and glared at Kevin for stealing his line before continuing down the bridge. Eventually, Courage reached Sandy and untied the ropes that bound Sandy to the pole. When she was free, Sandy gave Courage a big hug.

"Come on! We need to get out of here!" shouted Courage, and the two dogs ran across the bridge toward Kevin. Sandy gave Kevin a quick hug, when suddenly, a giant rumbling sound echoed across the room. The bridge started rocking crazily.

"MOVE!!!" bellowed Kevin and the three of them ran across the bridge at lightning speed. Just before they reached the end of the bridge, though, the island collapsed. The bridge snapped in half, bringing one half of the bridge down into the lava with the island. The other half of the bridge was left hanging off the side of the tunnel entrance. Kevin managed to make it across, but Courage and Sandy were left hanging onto the bridge for dear life. Kevin reached out an arm towards Sandy, who was closer to him. 

"Give me your paw!" yelled Kevin. Sandy stretched her arm towards Kevin, but just at that moment, the board that Sandy was holding onto suddenly snapped. Sandy began to fall.

"NOOO!!!" screamed Kevin.

  
  


Sandy didn't fall more than three feet, when she suddenly stopped. She looked up and saw Courage holding onto her paw with a vice-like grip. He had involuntarily reached out his paw and grabbed Sandy's paw as she went by, saving her life. Sandy managed to hold onto the bridge again and together they slowly made their way up into Kevin's waiting arms. 

The three of them were incredibly relieved, but no one was more relieved than Sandy. She looked at Courage and her heart skipped a beat. This incredible dog had just saved her life! 

She was thinking of ways to thank him when suddenly the rumbling sound began again, this time more violently. Rocks began coming off the walls, and the lava was beginning to bubble far below.

"C'mon!" said Kevin, and the three of them took off into the tunnel. Maybe it was Courage's imagination, but he thought he heard laughter coming from the room they'd just left!

  
  


When they reached the intersection, Kevin pointed down the darker tunnel. They ran down the tunnel for fifteen minutes, stopping only once, before they saw a mass of glowing moss ahead of them. They finally stopped at the one thing they didn't wish to see at all.

  
  


It was a dead end.

  
  


"What do we do? What do we do?" asked Courage and Sandy.

Before Kevin could answer, a dull roar could be heard all the way back at the intersection. A bright point of light was detected far down the tunnel. And it was getting brighter.

"Oh no," moaned Kevin. "It's the lava. It's coming this way."

  
  


(Uh-oh. Out of the frying pan and into the oven! How are they going to get out of this one?? Is this the end of our heroes???)

  
  


Stick around for the next chapter....which I haven't named yet.

  
  


[In case you're wondering, that bridge scene was indeed inspired by (or more accurately, stolen from) the movie, "Shrek."]

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	14. A Quick Escape

Chapter 14: 

  
  


Kevin was only partially correct. Something WAS coming down the tunnel towards them, but it wasn't lava. As I mentioned earlier, the ceiling of the lava chamber was made of an acidic mineral. When the room began rumbling, it opened up a tiny crack in the Earth's crust, just below the lava. The crack was just big enough for a steady stream of magma to enter the cave from below. Therefore, the level of lava in the room began to rise. It reached the tunnel and kept on rising, but the lava was like molasses and didn't travel very fast along the tunnel floor. However, when the lava came in contact with the acids inside the ceiling, a chemical reaction occurred. An explosion of fire and ash rushed through the tunnel and out into the labyrinth room at a speed many times faster than the lava. Because the labyrinth room was so large, it was able to contain the blast. But the explosion also made its way down the tunnel where Kevin, Sandy, and Courage were trapped in. (Sort of like the internal explosion of the Death Star in "Return of the Jedi".)

They only had about one minute before the explosion would reach them.

  
  


The heat from the harmless shock wave had already reached the three of them. 

"This is not good," said Kevin, sweat streaming down his forehead.

"What now??!!" shouted Sandy.

"We need to get out of here!" answered Kevin.

"How?! There's no way out!" yelled Courage.

Kevin looked down the tunnel. He could see the flames slowly getting larger, even though he knew they were moving very quickly. It's like when you see an oncoming train slowly come closer when it's really going 60 mph.

  
  


Kevin turned back to the end of the tunnel. Without a word, he quickly started pushing his hands against the stone blocks that made up the wall, one by one.

"What are you doing??!!!" screamed Courage.

"I'm trying to see if there's a secret way out of here!" said Kevin as continued to paw at the stones.

"Are you serious??!!" bellowed Sandy.

"It worked for Scooby-Doo!" answered Kevin, and kept on pressing the blocks of stone.

  
  


Courage and Sandy pressed their backs up against the wall, watching their doom approach at a rapid pace.

"I'm sorry I had to drag you into all of this," apologized Courage.

Right beside him, Sandy looked at him. "Don't worry, Courage." Taking his paw in hers, she tried to think of something final to say, but all Sandy could come up with was, "It's going to be okay."

They smiled at each other before Courage looked down the tunnel on last time. He turned back to discover that Sandy was still looking at him. In an instant, Courage suddenly knew her intentions. Courage quickly licked his lips as Sandy closed her eyes. Following her example, Courage closed his eyes too. They began to slowly lean in towards each other for a first and final kiss...

  
  


Meanwhile, right beside them, Kevin continued clawing at the wall, trying to find a secret way out. "This is hopeless," he said to himself. "What are the chances of there really being a secret passage here anyway?"

Kevin was just about to give up when he froze. He began to get goosebumps when he realized that he felt someone standing to the left of him! He turned to his left. Nothing was there except a corner of the dead end. But Kevin knew that somebody was there. With a shock, Kevin saw a bunch of dirt fall from the wall...as if were being brushed off with an invisible hand! In its place was a perfectly round circle of stone carved into the wall. Kevin could hear the roar of the fire getting louder behind him, so he spontaneously reached out and slapped his palm against the stone.

The stone began sinking back into the wall. Grinding noises were heard on the other side. "Yes!" shouted Kevin, triumphantly.

  
  


His triumph soon turned to surprise, as the entire wall suddenly caved in! Kevin lost his balance and tumbled onto the other side of where the wall used to be. Courage and Sandy (who were just one inch away from each other! Argh!), also lost their balance and fell. Courage couldn't believe his rotten luck, while at the same time feeling fortunate for finding a way out.

  
  


The three of them fell into a shallow pool of cold water. It was a natural spring that was now cluttered with the stones from the collapsed wall. The water created an underground stream that flowed down a small, eroded tunnel in the rock. The bottom of this pool was extremely slippery, so Kevin and the dogs slid along it and down the small tunnel with the water. It was basically a natural underground waterslide!

  
  


Kevin slid down the slide first, followed by Sandy and then Courage. The walls of the slide were covered in glowing moss, which allowed them to see where they were going. A wide curve to left or right appeared every so often. The slide also became steeper and steeper, causing Kevin, Sandy, and Courage to travel faster and faster.

"What's that sound!!!" Kevin shouted, his clothes becoming soaked.

Sandy heard it too. It was a loud, billowing sound, like a bonfire, mixed in with a "Sssshhh" sound, like fish frying in a pan of butter. 

  
  


Courage looked over his shoulder and screamed. The explosion of fire was following them down the waterslide! The "Sssshhh" sound was caused by the fire making contact with the water. Steam and heat began to beat on Courage's back. Courage tried to make himself go faster by pushing along the floor of the slide, but he was already moving at an incredibly fast speed. It wasn't fast enough, though, because the flames were gaining.

Kevin and Sandy couldn't look behind them, but they were bathed in an orange light, and they could feel the heat. They knew the fire would overtake them at any minute! Not wanting to feel left out, Kevin and Sandy joined Courage with the screaming.

  
  


Suddenly, the slide began to curve downward at a very steep angle. So steep, that it was a sheer ninety-degree drop! 

The water was falling all around the three of them now. The three of them kept their backs against the wall. Their stomachs were in their throats as they experienced total weightlessness! Courage looked up and noticed that they were moving faster than the flames. The fire was beginning to pull back. Courage would've cheered, but he was too busy fighting nausea. 

Eventually, the slide took another ninety-degree turn horizontally, just like those tall, fast slides you see at water parks. Kevin, Sandy, and Courage soon reached the end of the slide. They came out of a hole in a wall and flew across the surface of a body of water before coming to a stop in the water. No sooner had they stopped than Kevin yelled, "Get down!" before diving underwater, bringing Courage and Sandy with him. Immediately, an explosion occurred right above their heads. The fiery explosion rocketed out of the tunnel like a bullet from a gun.

It roared a foot above the surface of the water for several seconds before it dissipated into smoke. 

  
  


The three water sliders came back up to the surface, gasping and choking. They were now far underneath the outskirts of Nowhere in a small underground lake. The water was shockingly cold. Fortunately, the bank was only twenty feet away. Kevin swam to the bank, while Courage and Sandy dog-paddled after Kevin.

The bank was really a large alcove next to the water that led to...another tunnel. (Big surprise.) There was barely any light at all, save for a few clumps of moss on the ceiling. 

Courage and Sandy shook themselves off. Courage went over to console Sandy, when she suddenly gasped and pointed at Kevin. Courage looked at him and gasped as well.

The two dogs were fortunate enough to have fur coats that kept them being too cold, but Kevin did not have that luxury. His clothes were soaked and clung to his skin. He felt as if he had emerged from a swimming pool, clothes and all, and walked into an air-conditioned house. He was shaking so violently that he was unable to stand on his feet! He sat on his heels with crossed arms and chattering teeth.

Courage and Sandy rushed over to him and tried to warm him up, but it did no good. Kevin hadn't shaken like this since the last time he had the flu.

  
  


Kevin would've surely perished from hypothermia if a certain someone hadn't arrived at that moment. A greenish light began to emerge from the tunnel's entrance, casting everything in a pale green light. Courage and Sandy stood in awe as a small green fog suddenly appeared directly in front of the tunnel! It was as tall as a human, but had no human-like characteristics. It was just a green ectoplasmic blob.

The blob began to move towards them. Courage was trying to decide whether to run or protect Kevin and Sandy when he suddenly smiled. Sandy began to smile too. Not only was this glow emitting light but also heat...and lots of it! Kevin couldn't smile, but he felt the heat as well.

"R-R-Reginald?" Kevin whispered to himself. 

When the transparent green blob stopped three feet away from them, they felt as if they were sitting in front of an open fire.

Kevin immediately took his shirt off and warmed himself in front of the blob. His shivering began to go away. Courage and Sandy reached their paws outward and warmed up in front of the blob too.

  
  


After fifteen minutes, the glowing fog quickly faded away. It left the three, dry-as-a-bone adventurers adjusting their eyes to the darkness.

"I think," gasped Kevin, "I think that thing just saved my life."

"What was that?" asked Sandy.

Kevin took a deep breath. "That must've been Reginald Baggs." Kevin then explained how Reginald helped him find a way out of the dead-end tunnel. "He's helping us find our families."

Kevin shakily got to his feet. "I guess we keep going." He pointed down the tunnel.

  
  


Courage sighed. More tunnels. He wondered how all these tunnels got down here in the first place.

"C'mon!" shouted Sandy, who was already starting down the tunnel.

Kevin and Courage followed. Now that they were dry, they felt the chilliness of the tunnel. The water slide had dropped them farther below ground in a place without torches. Kevin crossed his arms and proceeded forward. Courage soon tapped him on the leg.

"I was that close," whispered Courage, with annoyance.

Kevin didn't know what Kevin was talking about at first. Then, he remembered seeing Courage and Sandy out of the corner of his eye back at the dead end. He immediately felt embarrassed for interrupting their "final moment together."

"Sorry," whispered Kevin, rolling his eyes and catching up to Sandy.

  
  


Get ready now for Chapter 15: Joseph's Debut

  
  


(This Monday marks the one month anniversary of "Courage and the Hendersons". Yippee! Also, that water slide scene was inspired by a similar scene from one of my favorite Spielberg films, "The Goonies.")


	15. Joseph's Debut

Chapter 15: Joseph's Debut 

(in other words, Joseph Williams comes back from the grave. And he's not happy.)

  
  


Kevin, Sandy, and Courage were unaware that the tunnel they were in would actually lead them directly to their families. By this time, Kevin's sister Katie was so exhausted from fear, she had fallen asleep next to her Mom and Dad. Carl and Diane comforted their daughter as best they could while at the same time comforting themselves. Muriel had moved closer to the Hendersons and comforted them as well. Only Eustace had the nerve to get up and attempt to distinguish his surroundings. However, there was practically no light in the room, except from that clump of glowing moss. Eustace began pacing to kill off time.

  
  


To save energy, they all acted as though the moss was a fire and always kept close to it. It was cold in the room, but not cold enough to see one's breath. Everyone tried huddling together to keep warm, because the heat that came from the moss didn't really help all that much. No one said anything for a while. However, something was bothering Carl, and he turned to his wife. 

  
  


"Honey, when we first came to town, you said that it looked familiar. Well, where have you heard about the town before?"

"You mean Nowhere?" asked Diane.

"Yes, dear," answered Carl.

Diane sighed. She glanced at Muriel, who was also interested. Eustace wasn't paying attention, so she explained:

"You see, one of my earliest memories is of my grandfather telling me that his father built his own town. I asked Granddaddy how he did that, and he said he had help from a friend to build it. He never told me what happened to him, but he told me that the name of the town was Nowhere."

  
  


"Yesss..." whispered a voice loudly in the darkness. It made everyone jump. "Some friend he turned out to be." It was the same voice who had spoken earlier.

"What do you want with us?" whispered Carl, who didn't want to wake Katie.

"And who are you?" asked Muriel.

"Ask him where the heck we are!" grumbled Eustace.

  
  


"I'll answer all of yer questions momentarily. But first, let's shed a little light on the situation, shall we?"

  
  


All was silent for a moment. Then, about forty feet in front of everyone, a ball of light emerged. It hovered over the ground several feet in the air. It resembled the Star of Bethlehem, but it was green in color. It grew brighter and brighter. Soon, it had illuminated the entire room.

Eustace, Muriel, and the Hendersons could now see where they were. They were in a circular, domed room about eighty feet in diameter. Everyone was against the wall, and they could see the light hovering over a stone altar in the center of the room. It was a round, elevated platform with funny markings along the side of it. Off to one side, there lay the entrance of a tunnel. Opposite the tunnel, on the other wall, there was a staircase leading upwards toward the surface. On the ceiling, right in the center of the dome, there was a hole that apparently looked covered up if you looked hard enough.

Everyone's attention suddenly focused on the light. Several things were happening to it. First, it began to grow larger as well as brighter. Second, it was beginning to head upwards toward the ceiling. Finally, a strange green mist began materializing around it. When the light was halfway towards the ceiling, it stopped. The mist transformed into a fog that reached down towards the ground. The Hendersons and Baggs watched in horror as appendages appeared out of the fog. Then a torso. Then a head. At last, the fog dissipated and revealed, in his green, glowing glory... (dum-dum-dummm...) THE GHOST OF JOSEPH WILLIAMS!!! 

  
  


Everyone began screaming, especially Katie who awoke at that very moment. The ghostly Joseph began to laugh. He really was a sight to see. He actually looked very similar to the Flying Dutchman from Spongebob Squarepants. He had a ghostly tail instead of legs, tattered clothes, and a beard. Instead of a pirate hat, a mass of shaggy black hair sat atop his head. His eyes were slightly buggy and his teeth looked very gruesome. But Kevin was right: he did bare a faint resemblance to Diane Henderson.

  
  


"A-ha ha ha! My dearest great-granddaughter Diane. It's a pleasure to finally see you."

Diane felt as if she was about to faint. Her family was equally shocked. "How do you know my name?" she asked, shakily.

"Oh, I've been expecting you and your family for a long time now. I've been trapped down here for over a century waiting for this moment, and now it's finally arrived!"

"Where are we?!" shouted Muriel.

"Aahh. Welcome to my underground mausoleum!" declared Joseph, and he spread out his hands. "I was buried several hundred feet above here. My body has long since decayed, but my spirit worked its way down here." He pointed to the plugged-up hole in the ceiling. "I created this room with my own power. I also created the vast network of passageways that run under the town of Nowhere as well!"

"P-power?" quivered Diane.

"Yes, my spirit has a dark power within itself. It's the same power that created the vortex which brought to you here!" He laughed mightily. Nobody else joined in. 

"What do you want?" shouted Carl again.

  
  


Joseph Williams grinned evilly. "Just a little postmortem payback, that's all. You see, I overheard the little story you just previously recited, Diane. But what my son forgot to tell you is that my so-called "friend" was nothing but a back-stabbing, know-it-all louse...a louse whose decendant is that old man standing next to you!"

  
  


Everyone turned to Eustace with amazement. This was the first time that the Hendersons and Muriel knew the connection between Eustace and Joseph. Even Eustace was surprised. "What huh?" he said.

Joseph then explained the history of Nowhere, how he and Reginald built the town, and how Reginald Baggs became so wealthy. (which you all should know by now.)

"He had more money than I ever had as Mayor. He had become a greedy, money-grabbing creep who wouldn't even give a cent to me. ME! His best friend and former mayor!"

"And I don't blame him," grumbled Eustace.

  
  


Joseph turned to Eustace. "You Baggs never change," he angrily said under his breath. His arm quickly transformed into a translucent tentacle which hurled itself at Eustace. It hit Eustace in the stomach, causing him to fly back into the wall. He then fell to the floor, unconsciously. "Eustace!" shouted Muriel.

The Hendersons and Muriel were all terrified by this point. Muriel came over to try and help Carl and Diane protect Katie.

  
  


"Eustace is no concern of mine, but that did feel good," laughed Joseph. "Now, I'm very sure that Reginald is somewhere nearby. He's heard about my plot to capture you all and is trying to stop me, I'm sure. And I want you all to help me do away with him once and for all!"

"Why should we help you?!" screamed Diane, who finally snapped. "You killed a man. Your best friend! I can't even believe that I'm related to you!"

  
  


"SILENCE!" bellowed Joseph. Everyone flew back against the wall. Joseph leaned in so that his face was ten feet away from the cowering relatives. "Let's face it. You ARE related to me. So now, you must help me fulfill my prophecy! Or else dire consequences will ensue!" Joseph pointed to Eustace, still unconscious, sitting against the wall. "That man's grandfather was my best friend once upon a time! But it's all in the past. Now, my retribution must be fulfilled! So I am ordering you all to help me destroy that evil man, Reginald Baggs!!!"

  
  


"He's not evil!!!" shouted a voice to the side. "And don't you DARE talk to my family like that, you worm-eaten piece of filth!!"

  
  


Alarmed, Joseph Williams turned in the direction of the voice. The Hendersons and Muriel also looked in the direction of the tunnel.

  
  


There, standing in the mouth of the tunnel, was Kevin Henderson. He was breathing heavily, and his black bangs were partially covering his eyes. But you could still see the angered gleam in them. Behind him, Courage and Sandy peered out from behind Kevin's legs. Both of them knew that maybe this wasn't the best way to make an entrance.

  
  


(Eeek! The whole gang's together again! Will they stay together for very long? And where is Reginald anyway?)

  
  


Be prepared...Courage swallows his fear again and stands up to the impossible in Chapter 16: The Definition of Courage.


	16. The Definition of Courage

Chapter 16: The Definition of Courage

  
  


(Sorry for the delay, folks. I violated website rules with my 'Chat Room' story. Penalty: They deleted my story and I wasn't allowed to upload any more stories for one week. Thankfully, the week has passed, so here's the rest of the story!) 

  
  


"KEVIN!!" shouted Carl and Diane.

"Mom! Dad!" answered Kevin, as if seeing them for the first time. Kevin ran to his family with Sandy and Courage right behind him. Kevin and Sandy fell into the arms of Carl, Diane, and Katie, while Courage leaped into Muriel's arms. (Don't forget Eustace is still unconscious off to the side.)

  
  


The ghost of Joseph Williams was undaunted by Kevin's threat. However, as he watched the two families rejoice over Kevin and the two dogs, a dim memory came to his mind. It was of himself hugging his family on the immigration boat. So long ago. Joseph quickly pushed the thought out of his mind. That was all history....history that could never be repeated.

  
  


Joseph Williams began to laugh. "Ha ha ha ha haaah...I've waited a long time for this little 'family reunion'." He smiled evilly.

  
  


"Go away!" shouted little Katie with fear.

  
  


"Awww, there's no need to be afraid, little one," said Joseph in a sarcastically sympathetic voice. "It's just your great-great grandfather." He reached out a ghostly hand towards her.

"You stay back!!!" yelled Diane, who held her daughter close to her.

  
  


Joseph laughed again. "Now all we need is one more, and the party shall begin." Only Kevin, Sandy, and Courage immediately knew who he was talking about.

  
  


"What happened to you?" whispered Kevin. "You and Reginald used to be such good friends. Why-?"

"You already know why, boy! All of you do!!" shouted Joseph, still heated with anger.

"Don't make him mad, son," said Carl, but Kevin was on a roll. 

"It all came down to money, didn't it?" continued Kevin, who slowly got to his feet. "You were mayor before Reginald had all that money. You knew what it was like to have wealth and power. But when it was Reginald's turn, you couldn't handle it, could you? Your title was practically stripped away from you, and you thought the only way to make you feel better was to murder Reginald, your best friend! HE WAS YOUR BEST FRIEND!!!!"

  
  


"LIAR!!!" bellowed Joseph. He began to shimmer around the edges. The outline of his body began to radiate large sparks of electricity. Before anyone could react, Joseph unleashed a powerful shock wave from within himself. It looked like a combination of an atomic bomb blast and something from Dragonball Z. The wave sent everyone flying into the ground and up against the wall. The boom echoed throughout the room like thunder.

"He was no friend of mine after what he did...and what put me through afterwards! How would you like it if your friend received an elaborate funeral while you were left to rot in an unmarked grave?! Huh?!! The townspeople loved Reginald more than me when I was Mayor. They always said that the money never went to his head; that he was never greedy. Well, what do you call someone who gives money to everyone except his "best friend?" A greedy, no-good snob, that's what!"

"Oh, like you were when you were Mayor? I don't think so!" yelled Kevin. "You just don't want to admit that he was better at running the town and gaining people's trust than you! I'm sure he has a good reason why he never gave any money to you, so-..."

  
  


"HA!" shouted Joseph. He swooped his hand and a whirlwind was created out of nowhere. It expanded until every square foot of the room was filled with a rushing wind. Everyone kept their heads down as dust began swirling everywhere. "I'd sure like to hear his petty excuse. Besides, what can you all do about it? You can't change the past...and you're all just insignificant humans!" Even though he didn't say it, he was also referring to Sandy and Courage.

The whirlwind began to intensify as Joseph began laughing again. Carl grabbed his son, who fell to the floor, and protected him as best he could. Sandy escaped Diane's grasp to be with Kevin and Carl. Diane then decided to protect Katie and Mr. Furry (yes, her stuffed bear is still with her.) Muriel tried her hardest to protect Courage, but her grip was weakening. Eustace was still unconscious on the ground nearby. 

  
  


Courage held onto Muriel in the midst of this nightmarish situation. The constant wind, combined with Joseph's eerie laughing, had frozen Courage with fear. Suddenly, a recent memory sprung to his mind. It was something Kevin had said earlier that night after telling Courage about his dog-talking ability: "You need to learn how to control that fear. Otherwise, your life will be miserable."

  
  


Courage looked at the Hendersons. Kevin and his family and Sandy. They were just innocent people who were unlucky enough to be related to this monster. Courage then looked at Joseph Williams. A familiar feeling began emerging inside Courage. He had felt this feeling just hours before (See chapter 10), but now it had doubled in intensity. A shadowed scowl arose on Courage's face and he left Muriel's grasp.

Courage walked slowly towards Joseph. Through the dust, Kevin and Sandy witnessed Courage walking up to the ghost. Both of them were astonished, to say the least.

When Courage was within 20 feet of the laughing ghost, he stopped. "HEY YOU!!!" shouted Courage at the top of his lungs.

  
  


Joseph stopped laughing. "Huh?" he uttered. The whirlwind ceased to exist. "What's this? A mangy dog is trying to stand up to me?" Joseph was on the verge of laughing again.

  
  


Courage stood up to his full height and growled. The look on his face made Joseph's smile disappear. "You're absolutely right," said Courage slowly and menacingly. (Of course, only Kevin and Sandy knew what he was saying.)

  
  


Joseph stared down on the little pink dog and smirked. "I've been watching you, Courage. When I sent my whirlwind to apprehend everyone, I could sense your fear. What I don't understand is why you have the gall to stand up to me now?"

  
  


Courage remembered sitting under the stars with Sandy, several hours ago. He recalled something Sandy had said to him during that conversation that seemed very appropriate for this situation: "It seems...that you are the most bravest when things are the most scariest."

  
  


Courage looked up at the ghost of Joseph Williams and said proudly, "I guess I'm just finally living up to my name." (Much applause from the audience.)

  
  


Behind him, Kevin and Sandy smiled at Courage's comeback. Sandy definitely wanted to thank Courage later for this.

Courage continued. "Can't you see what you're doing? You're destroying my family! And you're descendants too!" Courage pointed to the Hendersons. "You've already destroyed your past. You don't need to destroy our futures!" Then, Courage took a deep breath and said the one thing that Joseph never expected him to say: "What would your ancestors think of you now?" 

  
  


Joseph's eyes widened. Painful memories flowed through his head at light speed. Happy memories flew by like a super-fast movie. His first toy, his mother, his abusive brother, his trip to America, EVERYTHING flew past his mind. The past. All gone.

"NO!!!" shrieked Joseph. In a flash, Joseph's arm swooped down, and his hand whacked into the side of Courage like a golf club to a golf ball. Courage flew head over heels in the air until he slammed his back into the stone wall, so hard that the impact created cracks in the rock. Courage abruptly fell to the ground. He didn't move.

  
  


"COURAGE!!" screamed Muriel, Kevin, and Sandy, all at the same time.

"Courage. What an ironic name," growled Joseph. He turned to the trembling/crying group of people and Sandy. "Now, you all are going to meet the same fate if..."

  
  


"YOU WILL DO NOTHING OF THE SORT, JOSEPH WILLIAMS!!!" boomed a deep voice.

Everyone turned to the direction of the voice, which was the tunnel. Everyone but Joseph was startled by the voice and their eyes remained transfixed on the tunnel.

  
  


"Now the party's getting started," smiled Joseph.

  
  


(THIS IS IT!!!! The thrilling climax has finally arrived! It's Chapter 17: A Reunion 150 Years in the Making!!)

  
  



	17. A Reunion 150 Years In the Making

Chapter 17: A Reunion 150 Years In the Making

  
  


(LET'S GET READY TO RRRUUUMMMMBBBLLLEEE!!!!!)

  
  


In the mouth of the tunnel, a green mist began to appear. It began to warp and contort into a humanoid shape. The fog then began to reveal features such as hands, legs, arms, and a head. At last, the mist dissipated and in its place stood a transparent, old man. Kevin and Sandy were amazed. The man's ancient clothes were as tattered and unkempt as his beard. The face of this ghost was identical to the portrait that hung right next to the picture of Joseph.

  
  


It was at this point that Eustace began to wake up. His eyes slowly opened and he lifted his head slightly. Eustace couldn't believe his eyes. That man...standing in the tunnel...

"Grandpappy Reggie?" whispered Eustace, and he passed out again.

  
  


"Hello again, Joseph," said Reginald Baggs in a gruff, ancient voice.

"Reginald. Long time no see," answered Joseph Williams, with zero enthusiasm.

  
  


Reginald Baggs walked to the spot where Courage was standing before. Reginald stood directly between Joseph and everyone else. His greenish glow was identical to the glow surrounding his former friend.

"You certainly took your time, didn't you, Joseph?" asked Reginald.

"I'd wait a century and a half more for this moment, but it looks like it's already here," grinned Joseph.

"You have no right to threaten our descendants!" shouted Reginald.

"Bah," scoffed Joseph. "It was your descendants who allowed my descendants into their house, remember?"

"They didn't know!" responded Reginald.

"It doesn't matter. That simple act was the last straw. I decided to end this entire ordeal right here and now. Look around you. I've already knocked out two of your own."

Reginald suddenly laid his eyes on Eustace, his grandson. He gasped. The last time he saw Eustace was when he was just a small lad. His attention then turned to Courage, who lay motionless on the ground.

"I have to admit, there's more to that dog than meets the eye. Or, at least, there WAS. Ha ha ha!" 

  
  


The Hendersons and Muriel couldn't believe it. Was it possible that Courage didn't survive the impact against the wall?? Tears began to form in Sandy's eyes.

  
  


Reginald turned again to Joseph. "Leave these people alone! I'm the one you want!"

"I had a feeling you'd say that, Reggie," smiled Joseph. Then, without warning, Joseph created a sphere of fire in his palm and threw it at Reginald. The bewildered ghost jumped out of the way. Now the fire was heading straight towards the Hendersons! Reginald spun around and threw a bluish sphere of fire at Joseph's sphere. The fireballs exploded and dissipated mere feet away from the Hendersons. Joseph continued to throw fireballs at Reginald and Reginald kept avoiding them. Reginald threw some fireballs of his own, but Joseph simply brushed them aside.

"Your powers are weak, old man," said Joseph, whose ghostly figure loomed over Reginald like a giant statue. (A.N. Sorry, but I just HAD to put in a 'Star Wars' line in here SOMEWHERE!)

Reginald was unmoved by Joseph's accusation. "Your size and power is misleading. We are both equal in power!" The Hendersons and Muriel all watched this argument from a distance and were getting more and more afraid by the minute.

  
  


Joseph grunted. "This is getting us nowhere. Let's have it out. Right here, right now. I need to know...why you never gave me any money!!!" It was a question he'd been dying to ask for 150 years.

Reginald's answer was surprisingly simple. "Because you were Nowhere's former mayor! You already had money! In fact, you had more money than I did before I was elected Head of Finances!" pleaded Reginald, who had fallen to his knees.

"And then, just like that, you struck oil, and you had more money than I ever had as Mayor. Didn't you ever think about how I felt about that?!"

Reginald was sobbing now. "I...I never thought..."

"You never thought," mocked Joseph. "Well, if your head wasn't so filled with wealth and greed, you might've been thinking more clearly!"

"But I would've given you money if you'd only had asked! You never once asked me for money! Why? I wouldn't have turned you down! We were best friends!"

  
  


Joseph stopped. His weakness had finally been revealed. He thought he would get turned down by Reginald if he had asked. But after hearing Reginald's previous words, Joseph realized that the real reason Reginald never gave him any money was because he didn't have the courage to ask! He was afraid of Reginald's newly acquired wealth and power. And Reginald suddenly knew that too. His ghostly body began to grow and grow in size until he was the same size as Joseph. The two ghosts now towered over the Hendersons and Baggs'.

  
  


"Well? Why?" asked Reginald again, even though both of them knew the answer.

But Joseph couldn't find the words. "I...just...never thought..."

"You never thought," mocked Reginald. Now he had the upper hand. "Don't you see? It was money..."

"...that made us enemies!" finished Joseph, who finally understood the realization.

  
  


Kevin Henderson gasped. Money made them enemies? Kevin's hand dove into his pocket and pulled out the silver dollar. "NO!" cried Kevin. "Money made you two friends!" And he tossed the coin, which landed on the ground between the two ghosts.

Immediately, the two ghosts shrank to regular size. Both of them dove for the coin, but Joseph grabbed it first. "I don't believe it!" he cried. "My first silver dollar!"

"Yes," said Reginald. "I gave it to you, remember?"

  
  


Immediately, Joseph remembered it all. The boat. The glasses. The small boy named Reginald who found his glasses. The coin that symbolized their friendship.

"How could I forget?" whispered Joseph. If ghosts could cry, Joseph would definitely be doing so right now.

Nobody said anything for a minute. Then, Joseph grasped the silver dollar in his fist and walked up to the center of the elevated platform in the middle of the room. 

"But...that's all in the past, Reginald. No one can change the past. We're stuck in limbo now. The halfway point between Above and Below. This gathering of families has signaled the end of our time in limbo. It's now time to go where we rightfully belong."

Reginald understood. Kevin, the only person who wasn't petrified by fright, understood as well.

"But Joseph..." began Reginald.

"No! It's too late!" shouted Joseph. He was utterly defeated by this point. "It's time for me to go!" he sobbed.

  
  


Almost as if on cue, which it was, the platform began to rumble. The funny writings along the side began to glow red. The platform suddenly began to sink into the ground. A dark red light began leaking up from the sides of the platform, as well as a hot, dry wind and screams of pain and torture. Instantly, hundreds of worm-like tentacles wriggled their way up from below and began wrapping themselves around Joseph's ghostly body. Joseph dropped the coin on the ground.

Joseph began to sob and shriek as Reginald looked on in horror. Carl, Kevin, and Diane tried their best to keep Sandy and Katie away from this hellish scene.

"I killed you, Reginald!" bellowed Joseph as he began to sink into the Underworld. "I get what I deserve! But...I just want to say..." Joseph spit a tentacle out of his mouth and took a deep breath. "...I'm am still your best friend, Reginald Baggs!!....and...I forgive you!!!"

  
  


"NOOO!!!" screamed Reginald. He immediately ran towards Joseph and savagely began to tear the tentacles away from his friend, but they were too strong. Some of them even began to grab onto Reginald!

Kevin screamed with anguish. It looked as though Reginald and Joseph were both going Down.

  
  


Kevin was just about to run and try to free the ghosts when suddenly an explosion occurred above everyone's head. A blinding white light appeared on the ceiling of the room. The tentacles immediately released their grip on the ghosts and slithered back into the fires below. The rift closed. No more red light or tentacles or screams.

The two ghosts were shocked when they saw the light. Everyone was. But their shock soon turned to awe as a voice arose from the light. It sounded a bit like Enya, only fuller and more heavenly: "Reginald Baggs? Joseph Williams? Arise." The two men immediately got to their feet.

"It is time to come with me," said the voice.

Kevin came up from behind and stood directly behind the ghosts. He was close to collapsing from fear, or excitement, or joy, or something. "Are you...an angel?" he asked.

"Yes," answered the voice.

"Wait!" interrupted Joseph, as Kevin stepped back to his cowering family. "Why spare me? I thought I was supposed to go to..."

"Your everlasting friendship towards Reginald Baggs makes your sins null and void," declared the angel. "True friendship is one of the greatest virtues one can ever possess. Your confession proves it."

Joseph was so overjoyed that he didn't know what to do. Finally, he turned and gave Reginald the biggest hug he'd ever received. Reginald hugged him back and comforted him as he sobbed on his shoulder. When Joseph pulled himself together, Reginald asked, "May we say farewell to our friends?"

"Very well," replied the angel.

  
  


Joseph and Reginald approached the Hendersons, who plastered themselves against the wall.

"Good-bye, my family," said Joseph, sadly. "I hope you can find it in your hearts to forgive me."

"Farewell, Carl and Diane Henderson," said Reginald. "May the love for your children live on forever."

Carl and Diane managed a weak smile. Between them, Katie extended her hand and gave the two ghosts a shy, little wave.

"Good-bye little Katie," smiled Joseph. "Never let that bear out of your sight, OK?" Katie clutched Mr. Furry tightly as a response.

Then, the ghosts looked at Sandy. "Good-bye, friendly canine. May you live a long and virtuous life," they said. Sandy was shaking all over, but she smiled nonetheless.

  
  


Then the two ghosts walked over to the unconscious Eustace. Reginald knelt down to him and patted him on the head. "Ahh, my beloved grandson. It's such a shame you turned out so similar to Joseph."

"You mean like I USED to be," added Joseph.

"Yes, sorry. I can sense the virtue from deep within him. I hope in your remaining years, Eustace, some of that virtue might leak out." With that, he stood up and walked over to Muriel. "Muriel Baggs," said Joseph. "I apologize for all of this. Can you forgive me?"

"Well, of course," replied Muriel, shakily. "But next time, try and be a little more friendly, okay?" Joseph nodded as Reginald waved good-bye to Muriel. Then the two ghosts turned around and came face to face with an astonished Kevin.

"Thank you, dear boy," whispered Reginald. "Without you, our friendship would never have surfaced."

Kevin didn't know what to say. He felt so honored after reuniting two friends beyond the grave. "Well...I appreciate your thanks..." stammered Kevin. "I probably wouldn't have been able to do so without a little faith and..." Kevin paused. His eyes finally looked upon the little pink dog who still lay motionless off to the side. "...Courage." 

  
  


Immediately, Kevin sprinted towards Courage. The two ghosts followed. They were followed by Sandy, Muriel, and everybody else, except for Eustace. Everyone surrounded Courage as the two ghosts knelt by him. They carefully rolled his body over, which revealed an unresponsive face.

"Is he...alright?" Kevin asked.

Reginald and Joseph looked at each other with slightly distressed expressions. No breathing. No pulse. No heartbeat. Courage was dead, alright. 

Fortunately, however, Courage's soul was still inside his body! It was in limbo, just like Joseph and Reginald, but his lifeless body kept it contained inside of himself.

Because they were ghosts, Reginald and Joseph came to this conclusion almost instantly. Sandy began to cry. She knew, too, because she was a dog. (Sixth sense, etc.)

All the humans, however, did not have these extra abilities and were still waiting for a response. 

"Is Courage...OK?" asked Kevin again as Sandy broke down next to him.

The ghosts didn't want to upset anyone, so Joseph said, "We'll see what we can do."

"Yes," agreed the angel. No one other than Joseph and Reginald could hear the angel now. "It's not his time yet. I will help."

With that, the angel began to give secret instructions to the ghosts that only they could hear and understand. Everyone stepped back as Joseph and Reginald placed their ghostly hands on Courage's lifeless body. They closed their eyes and their ghostly glow began to intensify. Everyone was amazed when the glow surrounded Courage as well. A pleasant heat began to radiate off of the three of them. They remained this way for a minute or two until, suddenly, Courage's soul slowly began to return to his body. The glow abruptly faded away and the two ghosts sat on the ground. The procedure had zapped them of most of their energy.

  
  


Courage slowly opened his eyes. A fuzzy image slowly came into focus. Human, canine, and ghostly faces were staring down on him with bewildered expressions. Courage slowly sat up. 

"Wha...what happened?" he asked.

Sandy immediately flung her arms around Courage and gave him a quick peck on the cheek.

"Hey, Courage," whispered Kevin. "Welcome back."

Courage jumped up into Muriel's arms. He wasn't exactly sure what had happened, but he was glad that everyone acted as though he'd come back from the dead or something.

Suddenly, Courage's eyes landed on Joseph and Reginald, and he yelped in fright.

  
  


"Don't be afraid, Courage," replied Joseph. "I am very sorry for threatening everyone like that. You helped me realize that my hatred had covered up my true feelings for far too long. I thank you for that." Joseph bowed respectfully. 

"He's right," added Reginald. "We have been resurrected, thanks to you. Your virtue and bravery is truly unparalleled. May you always be blessed with this gift, little dog." Joseph and Reginald each reached out a hand and touched one of Courage's cheeks. The dog felt a brief warmth throughout his body before they pulled back. (Don't worry. Courage didn't get any super powers or anything. Think of it as how a ghost hugs a living thing.)

  
  


"Time to go," replied the angel. Courage gasped as he suddenly observed the brilliant light hovering nearby. The soothing voice brought a tear to Courage's eye as Joseph and Reginald walked over to a spot directly below the angel. 

"WAIT!" shouted Kevin. "How do we get out of here?!"

Reginald pointed to a vague outline of a door on the other side of the room from the tunnel. "Therein lies a staircase that will lead you to the surface." He then leaned over and picked up the silver dollar off the ground. He flipped the coin over to Kevin, which he caught. "Make sure you put this back where you found it," called out Reginald. Kevin nodded his head with watery eyes.

Suddenly, something amazing happened to Joseph and Reginald. First, their clothing turned a brilliant white. Then, a yellow halo of light appeared above both of their heads. Finally, two enormous, feathery wings appeared behind each of their backs.

"Farewell! Good-bye!" declared the two men as they began to float up towards the light. Everyone else said good-bye and waved back at them. When they reached the light, they faded away and the light slowly died out. Joseph Williams and Reginald Baggs had been accepted at last.

  
  


No one said anything for a while. The only light now was from that clump of bioluminescent moss next to Eustace. Eustace, by the way, was just beginning to wake up.

"Oh, my head," he moaned. "Whoa. I had the strangest dream..." He looked up and saw everyone looking at him. Then Eustace saw where he was. "Hey! Where the heck are we?"

  
  


(Whew...I never thought this moment would come, but here it is...THE FINAL CHAPTER!!!)

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



	18. The Hendersons Depart

Chapter 18: The Hendersons Depart   
  


(A.N. Get out your Kleenex. You're gonna need it.)  
  


The party began to make their way towards the exit. It took some effort to open the door, but once they did, they were met by a stone spiral staircase with torches on the wall. Carl grabbed a torch and led the way. The rest of the Hendersons followed. Sandy and Courage traveled up the steps side by side. Muriel took up the rear carrying a rather exhausted Eustace on her shoulder. The steps seemed to go on forever, but finally, the steps stopped at a small door, like a small storm shelter door, on the ceiling. It was similar to the secret door that led up into the museum. Carl used all his might to open the door. One by one, everyone climbed out and were amazed to discover where they were.

They had arrived at the other side of the city of Nowhere! They could see the town in the distance. In the east, the sun was beginning to rise, illuminating the sky in a brilliant orange-red. Directly next to the exit stood a sign. "NOWHERE CITY LIMITS" it read. It was the exact same sign the Hendersons had passed when they first arrived in Nowhere!

"C'mon!" said Kevin. And he began walking towards town. Everyone slowly followed. Kevin looked at his watch. It read "6:15 A.M." They had been awake practically all night, and they were all dead tired.  
  


As they arrived into town, they were shocked at what they found. The city was badly damaged. All the buildings were still standing, but broken glass and debris were everywhere. People staggered onto the street trying to figure out what happened. They seemed to recall nightmarish figures chasing them, but it seemed like it was just that. A nightmare. A cry began going around town that it was just a riot, and everyone began to accept it, although they didn't know what people were rioting for.

The two families arrived at the front of the museum. Kevin told everyone to stay where they were as he entered the museum. The door had been broken through and several exhibits were smashed, but the coin's display case remained undamaged. Slowly, Kevin took the silver dollar coin out of his pocket and placed it back in the case. "Rest in piece, guys," he whispered and then went back to his family.

As the Hendersons and Baggs' traveled through town, sirens began to sound from far away. Emergency vehicles began to arrive. They stopped in front of buildings to assess the damages. An ambulance pulled up to the Hendersons. The driver asked if they needed a ride. The Hendersons and the Baggs' ended up traveling back to the house, which was still in a very demolished state. The ambulance driver radioed in backup and a construction team.   
  


For the remainder of the day, both families stayed in the basement. It was a mess in there, but nobody really cared because they all fell asleep once they were all down there. As they slept, the construction crew got right to work on the house. They had helped rebuild this house several times before, so the procedure was fairly simple. They took apart the upper story that had fallen over and reconstructed it over the first story. They fortified the bottom story and carpeted all the floors. The electrical wiring and plumbing systems were installed, including the computer! New windows were set up, furniture was replaced, and lighting was installed. The entire crew was finished at about 3:00. This was about the time all the adults woke up. They were stunned as they walked through the house. It looked as if a giant sand vortex had not even come here! Everything was in its rightful place! Muriel and Eustace thanked the construction workers before they left.  
  


At 3:15 P.M., the phone rang. Diane answered the phone. It was her sister-in-law, Kevin's Aunt Vivian, calling from San Francisco. She asked to speak with her brother, Carl. Carl took the phone. The rest of the Hendersons stood within earshot of the phone.

"Hello? Carl?" asked Vivian. 

"Yes? Hi, Viv," answered Carl.

"Carl! Where on Earth are you?! I thought you were supposed to be here by now!"

"Well," said Carl as he looked at his family. "Our car broke down, so we decided to spend a couple nights here in Kansas. We stopped at a lovely little farmhouse here, too. You should really see it!"

Vivian sighed. "Well, our moving has been rather sluggish without you guys here. When are you going to get here?"

Carl thought for a minute. "We should be leaving by this evening. We'll probably stop in Denver at around midnight and arrive in San Francisco late tomorrow."

Courage's heart sank. The Hendersons would be leaving in a few hours! Courage whined.

"Kind of a shame though. I mean, I really expected you guys to be here," explained Vivian.

"Hey," said Carl, jokingly. "I already told you. We just stayed at this lovely little farmhouse on the way over and just didn't feel like leaving."

Kevin gasped. Those were the same words he had spoken to Courage when the two of them were in the tunnel!

"Hold on," said Vivian. "Mike wants to talk to you." A pause followed. Then Vivian's husband was talking.

"Hey, Carl! Just wanted to ask you one quick question: has anything cool or unusual happen on your way over here? Just curious."

The Hendersons just stood there looking at each other. They tried to think of something to say.

"Hello?" asked Mike.

"Oh....not much," said Carl. Kevin and Courage looked at each other with wide eyes. Kevin had said that to Courage too.

The family talked to Vivian and Mike a little longer and eventually hung up. As they were talking, Eustace sat down to watch TV, and Muriel began cooking a going-away dinner for the Hendersons. Carl and Diane helped as the Henderson kids played around with Courage and Sandy.  
  


Dinner was exquisite. Most of the food was donated by some anonymous citizens of Nowhere. Chicken and rice and beans and gravy. It was one of the most enjoyable dinners both families had ever had. They all talked about their adventure. No one felt more good about himself, however, than Courage. He had fought his fear, displayed his bravery, and had been congratulated by others from another world. The Hendersons almost regarded Courage as one of their own, even though they knew his place was here with Muriel and Eustace. Even now, as Courage ate his dinner, he could see Sandy at the other end of the table looking at him with a look of admiration and happiness unlike anything he'd seen before. He felt so lucky to have known her. 

As they all finished dinner, Eustace made a rare announcement. "I'd just like to say," he said. "That I made a call to a car shop in town. They came here while the Hendersons were asleep and fixed up your car."

The Hendersons were surprised as well as overjoyed by the news. "Thank you, Eustace," said Carl.

"Yeah...well...I just didn't wanna see a perfectly good car get all rusty standing here for so long," Eustace grumbled as he sat down. "That's all."

"I guess that guy really DOES have virtue inside him," Kevin whispered to Courage.  
  


Afterwards, the Hendersons began to pack their things. Most of the Hendersons' belongings were recovered from the storm. Kevin's sunglasses and laptop were miraculously undamaged. Everyone's clothes were still inside the basement drawers. The suitcases were opened and filled. Everyone went to the bathroom, one by one, for one last time. 

By now, it was about 6:30 P.M. and the sun was beginning to set. The Hendersons grabbed their luggage and headed out to the car which was parked on the side of the road in front of the house. It faced down the road away from the town of Nowhere and towards the setting sun.  
  


Muriel hugged Diane and Carl. "Be sure you don't stay too long over in California. I always feel so sad whenever visitors leave."

"Same with us," answered Diane.

"We'll only be over there a couple weeks. We'll call you guys when we get there, alright?"

"Why not," said Eustace who shook Carl's hand.

"Bye, Katie," said Muriel.

Katie shook Mr. Furry's hand for her. "Bye-bye, lady," she said. Carl and Diane laughed.

"It's been fun," said Kevin to Eustace and Muriel. "We'll have to come back here again on the way back!"

Oh, by all means!" exclaimed Muriel. Eustace sighed with agreement.

"Hey, Kevin," said his father. "Where's Sandy?"

Kevin put on his sunglasses. "Oh, she's out back saying good-bye to Courage. She should be along in a minute."  
  


(Warning: Really mushy scene ahead...or really cute, depending on your age.)  
  


Behind the house, the setting sun bathed everything in a pleasant shade of orange. The road stretched all the way to the horizon, directly under the glowing orb. Silhouetted against the sun stood Courage and Sandy. They were holding each other's paws and staring into each other's eyes. (Also, Coldplay's "In My Place" is playing in the background because I think it's appropriate for this scene.)

"Courage?" asked Sandy. 

"Hmm?" answered Courage.

"These past few days have been the most...incredible days of my life."

Courage thought for a second. "Because you saw some of the scariest things you could ever imagine?"

"Well, yeah," admitted Sandy, shyly. "But the main reason these days have been so unbelievable was because...I've spent them with you."

Courage's smile became even brighter, as well as his heart.

"I just can't believe I'll be leaving you, Courage," said Sandy, sadly. "It feels as though I've known you my whole life."

"Hey, don't worry," replied Courage, softly. "You'll be coming back the same way, won't you?"

"I certainly hope so," answered Sandy. She paused for a second. "Y'know, I never did thank you for saving my life."

"Hmm? Oh, yeah. On the bridge." Courage was definitely feeling nervous at this point. "Well...I'm ready to accept it now," he said with a smile.

"I thought you would," whispered Sandy.

Then she closed her eyes, leaned in, and gave Courage his first kiss. Of course, Courage was a bit bewildered for a moment, but then he closed his eyes and kissed back.  
  


(Now I could go on and on about what each dog is thinking right now, but I don't wanna bore you all with description...especially when it's this personal.)  
  


Ten seconds later, the kiss was broken and Courage came back to the real world. Before he could say anything to Sandy, he felt something odd happening behind him. He looked over his shoulder and saw his tail wagging! It had never done that before! It felt so strange for some reason that Courage began to laugh.

"What?" asked Sandy. Courage pointed to his tail.

"It's never...done....that...before," gasped Courage between giggles. Sandy began giggling too when she suddenly showed Courage that her tail was wagging too! Before they knew it, the two dogs collapsed into each other's arms, laughing like crazy.

After a minute, Courage and Sandy calmed down. "You really are something, Sandy," gasped Courage.

Sandy brushed a paw through the fur on Courage's head. "I know," she answered. Then, Sandy got to her feet. "C'mon, my family's waiting." With that, Courage and Sandy walked "paw-in-paw" to the Henderson's car.  
  


"Awwww," said Diane, as the canine couple approached the car. "They look so sweet together."

Kevin rolled his eyes behind his glasses. "Mom, you're making a scene," he whined.

"Go on, Sandy," said Carl. "Say good-bye to Courage."

Sandy gave Courage a final hug. Courage held her tight, knowing that it would be a while before he would have another opportunity like this again.   
  


The Hendersons finally got into the car. They said a few more audible good-byes as they started the engine. The car lurched into gear and began to head down the road. Courage began running down the road with the car. Kevin and Katie were waving at him. Courage waved back. As the car picked up speed, Courage saw Sandy waving to him in the rear window. She had a sad smile on her face. "Good-bye," she mouthed in the window.

"Good-bye!" yelled Courage as he stopped running. The car zoomed away into the distance.

"I love you, Sandy," mumbled Courage to himself. The Henderson's car disappeared on the horizon. Hanging his head and sighing sadly, Courage turned back to his house.

Muriel carried Courage in her arms as she entered the house. Eustace was looking underneath the couch cushions.

"Hey, Muriel! I can't find me paper!"

Courage sighed again. It looked like things were back to normal around here.  
  


******  
  


The Hendersons arrived at a motel in Denver at around 11:30 P.M. Carl called Vivian and Mike to tell them that they would be arriving at their house tomorrow evening.

At midnight, the lights were out. The Hendersons were all asleep in the two motel beds. Sandy, however, stood at the window. Her eyes swept over the beautiful Rocky Mountains. The city was spread out before her like a field of fireflies. Somewhere beyond those mountains was the dog Sandy couldn't stop thinking about. Her eyes traveled up to the moon, which hung in the sky like a giant silver coin.

"I miss you already," she whispered to her self, as she sat on the floor and stared up at the moon.  
  


At that exact moment, Courage was lying at the foot of Muriel's bed. She and Eustace were fast asleep, but Courage was looking out the window at the exact same moon. He was bathed in moonlight as he sighed. Courage rolled onto his back and fell asleep, dreaming of the day when the Hendersons, and Sandy, would return.

The End  
  


(I can't believe I've spent a month and a half on this incredible story!...And now it's finally done! Yahoo! I'd like to say thanks to all the readers who have read this story. I dedicate it to you.)

(I'd also like to give an extra special thanks to three fanfic readers who have stuck with me since day one: Sailor scout Darkest Moon, Gareth Paul Barsby, and the one and only Chris Gammon. Thanks!!!)  
  


Couldn't get enough of the Hendersons? Fear not!! A SEQUEL IS IN THE WORKS!!! Who knows? I might even include the previously mentioned readers in my next story...and anyone else if they're interested!

(This is Jonathan R. Signing off).  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



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